Modelling water conservation prioritization in the Henry's Fork Watershed (thesis)

Abstract

Agricultural water usage has long been at odds with preserving aquatic ecosystems in the Henry's Fork Watershed, which is located in Southeastern Idaho. To address the problem, the Henry's Fork Foundation (HFF), a local science nonprofit, developed a Water Marketing Program aimed at reducing usage of surface water within the watershed. This manifested itself in the form of a multifaceted incentives-based approach that includes renting land, shifting historical crop regimes, and encouraging alternative crops. This thesis outlines the development of a water conservation prioritization scoring system and model to help HFF be most efficient with their funds. To accomplish this, an ArcGIS model was developed to account for net irrigation demand, priority date, geographic location, and place of use. The information collated within the ArcGIS model produces an interactive map illustrating each parcel of interest and their ranking. This map, along with two correlating databases, will be instrumental to the future success of the Water Marketing Program because it allows HFF to target high priority parcels.