Moderator - Cheryl Ulrich
Weston Solutions, Atlantic Beach, FL

Panelists
Cheryl Ulrich, WESTON Solutions, Inc., Atlantic Beach, FL
Andrew Szojka, Past President, Canadian Water Resources Association,Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Ada Benavides, HQ USACE, Washington DC
Michael E. Campana, AWRA President, Oregon State University, Portland, OR

In January 2011, the AWRA Board approved the Policy Committee's paper entitled "Water: The Call for a National Vision and Strategy." AWRA officially recommends development of a national water vision and strategy for how to best use, protect and manage our water resources. AWRA believes that a national water vision and strategy should be developed to provide a clear framework for sustainable management of our water resources, clarify roles and responsibilities, increase accountability, reduce conflict, improve the integration of resources, provide water security for future generations and save public funds by more effective use of resources. A national vision must be translated into strategies and policies that clearly define the roles and responsibilities of federal, state, and local governments and the public, and that establish a blueprint for future action. A successful vision and strategy must take an integrated approach, recognizing that water is inextricably tied to other systems that are already part of the built and natural environment, such as energy generation, land-use, and economic development. Even within the world of water, there are various issues--water quality, water quantity, and ecosystem/habitat needs that require closer collaboration than we see today. As part of these efforts, there is an immediate need for an assessment of the nation's water resources to include the current status of the resource, the future needs for water, and identification of gaps that exist in fulfilling these needs. At the same time, water managers in the U.S. must also develop more efficient ways to prioritize and use water quantity and quality information for decision-making. Policy-makers need a way to accurately assess risks, so they can prioritize the resources necessary to protect the nation's water resources. 

Moderator:  Sigmund Silber
S. Silber & Associates, Santa Fe, NM

Panelists

Ned Godshall, Altela, Inc., Albuquerque, NM
Frank Ward, NM State University, Las Cruces, NM
George Bomar, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Austin, TX
John D’Antonio, New Mexico State Engineer, NM
Gary Walker, Sandy Land Underground Water Conservation District, TX

The panel discussion will provide an opportunity for those in the audience to address their questions and express their potentially contrary perspectives to the presenters from the prior session. We anticipate that the New Mexico State Engineer will be a member of the panel. This session will also allow members of the panel to learn how these issues are being dealt with in other parts of the U.S. The focus of the panel discussion is how to increase New Mexico's water supply by either adding new supply or improving conservation efforts. The thesis is that there are currently obstacles to moving forward with both sides of the water balance and that these obstacles in many cases can be reduced. Special emphasis will be on cloud seeding, oilfield water water, institutional obstacles and the implication of alternative sustainability options but members of the audience should feel free to raise questions on any approach to removing obstacles which interfere with adding to the water supply or reducing consumption both of which have the same positive impact on the water budget.

Moderator:  John Wells
Minnesota Environmental Quality Board, St. Paul, MN
 
Panelists

Steven L. Stockton
Director of Civil Works, Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, DC

Ari M. Michelsen
Texas A&M University System, El Paso, TX

Michael E. Campana
Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR

Carol R. Collier
Delaware River Basin Commission, West Trenton, NJ

In January 2011, the AWRA board approved a position statement on integrated water resources management, where IWRM is defined as the coordinated planning, development, protection, and management of water, land and related resources in a manner that fosters sustainable economic activity, improves environmental quality, ensures public health and safety, and provides for the sustainability of communities and ecosystems. The AWRA statement calls on policymakers, planners and managers at national, tribal, interstate, state and local levels to encourage collaborations, policies, programs and plans that embrace IWRM. It also recognizes the magnitude of the challenge facing the nation, suggesting that IWRM will take a national commitment to:

Moderator – Mike Roark and Amy Louise,
USGS, Albuquerque, NM and USACE, Albuquerque, NM

Panelists

Mike Roark, USGS, Albuquerque, NM
Overview of URGWOM

Craig Boroughs, USBR, Albuquerque, NM
ET Toolbox, Application in Biological Assessment

Nabil Shafike, NMOSE-ISC, Albuquerque, NM
Rio Grande Compact and MRGCD Water Operations

Stephen Kissock, USACE, Albuquerque, NM
Watershed Modeling

Phillip J. King, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
RiverWare Model for the Rio Grande Project Area

Amy Louise, USACE, Albuquerque, NM

Future Work Plan The Upper Rio Grande Water Operations Model (URGWOM) developed through an interagency effort is designed to simulate processes and operations of facilities in the Upper Rio Grande Basin in New Mexico and Texas from the Colorado-New Mexico state-line to Fort Quitman, Texas and complete accounting calculations for tracking the delivery of San Juan-Chama Project water allocated to specific users. Four separate URGWOM modules are utilized for modeling exercises and decision support: Planning, Water Operations, Forecast, and Accounting. These modules have been used in different applications. For example, the Planning Module is utilized to simulate different operation scenarios so that the subsequent long-term impacts of a proposed action can be evaluated on various indicators including deliveries to water users, river flows, interstate Compact deliveries and Compact status, and the overall water budget. The Water Operations Module is used to forecast operations, deliveries, and resulting flows through the end of a calendar year with forecasted inflows computed using the Forecast Module. The Accounting Module is utilized to simulate year-to-date conditions in the Basin and provide an updated status of account storage and deliveries made to water users. Some of the URWOM modules have been used in studies to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). URGWOM has been adopted as the front line tool for river and reservoir management and water accounting in the Basin by Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).  Lead agencies include USBR, USACE, New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission (ISC), and provide the most significant portion of the founding and have representatives on an Executive Committee responsible for final decisions on the direction of URGWOM development. An interagency Technical Team is responsible for URGWOM development and model administration, while the URGWOM Steering Committee provides oversight and direction on model development based on the needs in the basin. In this panel session the invited speakers will provide the conference participants an update on the URGWOM projects, discussion on technical challenges, applications of URGWOM in flood control planning and water operations, water accounting, and future work plan. 

Moderator – Ari Michelsen
Texas AgriLife Research, Texas A&M University, El Paso, TX

Panelists

Phillip J. King NMSU-WRRI, Las Cruces, NM
Hydrogeological framework of Mesilla Basin

Mike Darr USGS-NM, Albuquerque, NM
Groundwater Model Development

Ari Michelsen, TAMU-TWRI, El Paso, TX
Database and Surface Water and Groundwater Interaction

John Bumgarner USGS-TX, Austin, TX
Water Quality and Geochemistry

Sharon Megdal UA-WRRI, Tucson, AZ
The Santa Cruz and San Pedro Aquifers

Saúl Peña, Geological Service of Mexico, Mexico City, MX
Hydrogeological Characterization of the Conejos Medinos Aquifer

The United States and Mexico share transboundary aquifers along the border.  These transboundary aquifers are an essential and in many cases, the only source of water for border communities. Declining water levels, deteriorating quality and increasing use of ground water resources by municipal and other water users on both sides of the international border have raised serious concerns about long-term availability of this supply. Water quantity and quality are determining and limiting factors that ultimately control future economic development, population growth, and human health along the border. However, knowledge about the extent, depletion rates, quality, and solute movement of transboundary aquifers is inadequate and in some areas completely absent. Binational and multi-state collaboration is needed to develop new, reliable and comprehensive information on these critical aquifers.  In 2006 the United States Congress authorized the US-MX Transboundary Aquifer Assessment (TAA) Program under Public Law 109-448, to conduct binational scientific research to systematically assess priority transboundary aquifers. Three years (of funding) into this program the results  and binational cooperation are providing essential new information and a scientific foundation for state and local officials to address pressing water resource challenges in the U.S.-Mexico border region. Investigations are being conducted in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey and border Water Resources Research Institutes and in collaboration with appropriate state agencies, stakeholders, Mexican counterparts and the International Boundary and Water Commission. This panel will invite scientists from both US and Mexican organizations who have worked on the TAA scientific programs and development of binational agreements  to share their views and discuss with conference participants  the  results of binational research  three transboundary aquifers including the aquifers characteristics (extent, storage and quality), well fields and groundwater uses, surface-groundwater interaction, information exchange, policy and governance issues and future research needs and plans.

Co-sponsored by International Affairs Committee of AWRA

Moderator – Carol Collier
Delaware River Basin Commission, West Trenton, NJ

  Panelists

Chad Pindar
Supervisor Watershed Planning and Compliance Section
Delaware River Basin Commission, West Trenton, NJ


Thomas Beauduy
Deputy Executive Director
Susquehanna River Basin Commission, Harrisburg, PA

A panel of regulators from four states/interstate agencies representing different areas of the country will discuss their approach to protecting water resources during natural gas development using high volume hydrofracturing techniques. Many states have enacted new regulations to cover the different aspects of hydrofracturing - water withdrawal, well pad development and operation, and wastewater treatment and disposal. The panel members will discuss their programs and highlight pro and cons and lessons learned. Presentations will be time limited in order to facilitate discussion and dialog with the audience.

Moderator – Cindy Dyballa
Consultant to the Alliance for Water Efficiency, Chicago, IL

Panelists

Sharon Megdal
Water Resources Research Center, University of Arizona, Phoenix AZ

Denise Fort
University of New Mexico Law School, Albuquerque, NM

John Longworth
New Mexico Water Use and Conservation Bureau, Albuquerque, NM

  Much is known about how to achieve greater water efficiencies in human water uses, and also about the instream and riparian needs of various watersheds. But very few communities have put the two together.  This panel will explore the links between water efficiency, instream flow protection, and watershed health, based on practical experience in the US. Water efficiency programs can satisfy many community goals: growth, drought management, avoided capital costs, and more. Can these programs also contribute to watershed health and improved instream flows?   With ever-expanding demands for multiple water uses and increasingly insufficient supply, improved water efficiency can -- in concept -- help stretch water supplies and help protect aquatic environments.  This panel will explore these issues from a variety of perspectives.  Panelists will consider the nationwide applicability of several recent efforts to link water efficiency and environmental improvement, including a project of the Alliance for Water Efficiency, American Rivers and Environmental Law Institute exploring the linkage in the Colorado River basin, and a pilot of the Conserve-to-Enhance concept in Tucson Arizona that allows water consumers to connect their water conservation to environmental enhancement.