LimnoTech
LimnoTech's hydrologic model was used to examine the impact of water withdrawals on different components of the flow regime.
Success Story
Withdrawals and flow changes impact the Great Lakes
The growing potential for Great Lakes Basin water withdrawals and diversions has increased concern about negative impacts to water resources. In collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, LimnoTech explored the utility of flow methods in the Basin to inform the management of the waters of the Great Lakes basin.
Problem
Concerned about potential threats to the long-term sustainability of Great Lakes resources, the Nature Conservancy identified the need for practical methods to describe and measure changes to altered flow regimes in the Basin.
Approach
Funded by a grant from the Great Lakes Protection Fund, LimnoTech applied a watershed hydrologic modeling tool as a means of enhancing and testing flow alteration methods. We also evaluated the utility, data requirements, and constraints of watershed modeling and other tools within the context of water withdrawal issues.
Result
This project demonstrated how a suite of existing hydrologic analysis tools could be used to address a range of water management questions. The project report is a valuable resource for water managers and stakeholders in the Great Lakes region.
For more detail about LimnoTech’s watershed hydrologic model, see http://www.glc.org/wateruse/tools/limno/intro/intro.html