BOR

The Colorado River is the principal source of water for agriculture and riparian vegetation in Arizona, southern California, and southern Nevada. To account for water use by each State or individual and to verify lands fallowed for conservation programs and other water management needs, Reclamation routinely monitors more than 3.5 million acres of agriculture and riparian vegetation along the Lower Colorado River, from Hoover Dam south to the international border with Mexico.

The BOR uses lidar and other remote-sensing-based elevation data as a basis for hydraulic modeling of dam failure and operational release flood flows. This work involves the implementation of both one-dimensional and two-dimensional hydraulic models and relies heavily on an interfacing with Esri’s ArcGIS software. Hydraulic modeling employs the use of the Danish Hydraulic Institute’s MIKE models. Applications of this technology include emergency management and dam safety risk analysis.

The BLM Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program (LCR MSCP) is charged with improving habitat for endangered avian species at multiple conservation areas along the Lower Colorado River, with the goal of providing conditions that are favorable to population recovery.  Planning for habitat improvement requires land classification data including vegetation type, vegetation structure, and open water extent and depths.  A mechanism is needed to evaluate field conditions and to measure the results of LCR MSCP management efforts against mandated requirements.

BOR performs dam failure inundation modeling and mapping in support of emergency evacuation planning and dam safety risk analysis. Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR), lidar, and other geospatial terrain data are used within an Esri ArcGIS environment for pre- and post-processing of numerical hydraulic models. Hydraulic modeling employs one- and two-dimensional modeling techniques and relies primarily on the models produced with MIKE software by DHI.

The Colorado River is the principal source of water for irrigation and domestic use in Arizona, southern California, and southern Nevada. To account for water use by each State or individual and to verify lands fallowed for conservation programs and other water management needs, the BOR routinely monitors more than 3.5 million acres of agriculture and riparian vegetation along the Lower Colorado River, from Hoover Dam south to the international border with Mexico.

Colorado River Delta - Water For the Environment and Environmental Benefits

The BOR administers the Operating Criteria and Procedures (OCAP) to determine irrigation status for the Newlands Reclamation Project, which covers approximately 61,000 acres in Nevada.