Shasta McGee, Marissa Reno, Carlos A. Aragón, Enrique R. Vivoni

Amount and Variability in Tributary Inflows to the Middle Rio Grande
Shasta McGee, Marissa Reno, Carlos A. Aragón, Enrique R. Vivoni
WRRI Symposium
Socorro, NM
16 August 2005
Department of Earth and Environmental Science
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
Jemez River
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1) Which tributaries offer significant flows to the
Middle Rio Grande?
2) During which years or seasons do the greatest
streamflow contributions occur?
3) For watersheds giving relatively substantial
contributions, what causes the observed
differences in hydrologic response?
METHODS
• These questions were answered by analyzing daily
stream discharge data from as many of the tributaries
as possible between Otowi and Elephant Butte.
• An overlapping period of record is necessary for all
statistical analyses of the data.
• GIS is used to look at the vegetation and precipitation
fields which may explain the watershed responses.
PERIOD OF RECORD
Rio Grande
Milligan Gulcha 8358550
Rio Grande near San Acacia 8354900
Rio Salado 8354000
Rio Puerco 8353000
Rio Grande near Bernardo 8332010
Abo Arroyo 8331660
Tijeras Arroyo 8330600
South Diversion Channel 8330775
Wastewater Treatment Plantb
N Floodway at Albuquerque 8329835
San Antonio Drainc
N Floodway at Alameda 8329900
Rio Grande at Alameda 8329928
Rio Grande at Bernalillo 8329500
Jemez River 8329000
Las Huertas Creekd
Rio Grande at San Felipe 8319000
Galisteo Creek 8317950
Santa Fe River 8317200
Rio Grande below Cochiti Dam 8317400
Rio Grande at Otowi Bridge 8313000
Tributary
20
Near Reservoir
Urban
15
10
5
0
1900
1915
1930
1945
1960
1975
1990
a
Number designations indicate USGS site number; data available at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis.
b
Data provided by the Middle Rio Grande Water Assembly.
c
d Data provided by Jack Veenhuis ([email protected]).
2005
Data from New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources Open-file report 469. Citation: Johnson, P. S., W. J. LeFevre and A. Campell (2002).
Hydrogeology and Water Resources of the Placitas Area: Sandoval County, New Mexico. Socorro, New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources: 1999
Tributatry
Santa Fe River
Galisteo Creek
Las Huertas Creek
Jemez River
North Floodway Channel at Alameda
North Floodway Channel at Albuquerque
San Antonio Drain
Wastewater Treatment Plan
South Diversion Channel
Tijeras Arroyo
Abo Arroyo
Rio Puerco
Rio Salado
Milligan Gulch
% of Flow
0.80%
0.52%
0.35%
5.44%
0.84%
0.38%
0.01%
48.77%
0.07%
0.06%
0.49%
28.92%
14.91%
0.12%
This graph
shows the plot
of the
percentages of
flow for all the
tributaries.
Santa Fe River
100%
Galisteo Creek
90%
Las Huertas Creek
80%
Jemez River
70%
North Floodway at Alameda
60%
North Floodway at Albuquerque
50%
San Antonio Drain
Wastewater Treatment Plan
40%
South Diversion Channel
30%
Tijeras Arroyo
20%
Abo Arroyo
10%
Rio Puerco
0%
Rio Salado
1945
1955
1965
1975
1985
1995
This graph shows
all tributaries
except the Rio
Puerco and Rio
Salado due to the
large flooding
events which
cause occasional
large flows.
10%
Santa Fe River
9%
Galisteo Creek
8%
Las Huertas Creek
7%
Jemez River
6%
North Floodway at Alameda
5%
North Floodway at Albuquerque
4%
San Antonio Drain
3%
South Diversion Channel
2%
Tijeras Arroyo
1%
Abo Arroyo
0%
Milligan Gulch
1945
1955
1965
1975
1985
1995
Milligan Gulch
SEASONAL RESPONSES
Daily streamflow records were grouped into seasons, particularly focusing on snowmelt and monsoon seasons.
Differing responses are generally explainable via GIS analyses of vegetation and precipitation chacteristics.
Seasonal Comparison - Jemez River
700
600
Snowmelt
Response
Example:
Jemez River
Jemez Precipitation - PRISM
Snowmelt (Apr/May/Jun)
500
Monsoon (Jul/Aug/Sep)
500
400
300
Monsoonal
Response
Example:
Rio Puerco
200
100
0
1940
Jemez Vegetation
1950
1960
1970
Year
1980
1990
2000
PRISM data is given in millimeters and was downloaded from
www.rgis.unm.edu (1-km resolution)
There is much higher precipitation in the north, which is
clearly shown by the forest being the dominant vegetation
in that area. This is probably due to the mountains. The
south has considerably lower precipitation, which is also reflected by the juniper savanna and desert vegetation.
Other significant watersheds also exhibiting this
response: Santa Fe River
CONCLUSIONS
Tributary contributions to the Middle Rio Grande are not
negligible in all cases. Future studies should consider tributary inflows as appropriate for the intended purpose and
scope.
Rio Puerco Precipitation - PRISM
Seasonal Comparison - Rio Puerco
Snowmelt (Apr/May/Jun)
450
Average Daily Discharge (cfs)
Identifying and understanding the components that contribute to the quantity and quality of water within
the Middle Río Grande Basin is an increasingly important task as the demand for this resource continues to escalate. As a result, additional emphasis is being placed on providing accurate supply projections and creating sustainable water plans in the region. This work assesses the role of tributary contributions to the Río Grande in the
river reach from the Ottowi gauge to Elephant Butte using a geographical information system (GIS) and statistical
analyses of historical stream gauge measurements. We specifically seek to quantify the amount and variability of
tributary inflows to the Río Grande from several major watersheds. We find that significant tributary contributions arise from the Jemez River, Santa Fe River, Galisteo Creek, Río Puerco, and Río Salado. Focusing on these watersheds, we observe that the variability of inflows between tributaries can be attributed to differing seasonal responses (i.e., major precipitation forcing and subsequent runoff response), vegetation characteristics, and watershed areas. Statistical analyses show that the Jemez and Santa Fe Rivers exhibit peak flows as a result of snowmelt, while the Río Puerco and Río Salado experience peak flows as a result of summer monsoon events. Galisteo
Creek exhibits a mixed response and contributing factors are elucidated using GIS-based analysis of vegetation
characteristics and rainfall data. This observational study provides insight that will enable an improved treatment
of tributary inflows in simulation models of the Middle Río Grande.
AMOUNT OF FLOW
Contributions to the Rio Grande from each tributary are shown in the below table and plots. Percent of flow values shown in the table are calculated by taking the average over the entire period of
record of average annual discharge (for particular tributary) divided by discharge at the most immediate downstream gauge (on the Rio Grande). Percent of flow values shown in the plots are annual
averages. Relative values for percent of flow show that significant contributions to the Rio Grande occur via the Jemez River, Santa Fe River, Galisteo Creek, Rio Puerco, and Rio Salado.
Average Daily Discharge (cfs)
ABSTRACT
Monsoon (Jul/Aug/Sep)
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
1940
1950
1960
1970
Year
Rio Puerco Vegetation
1990
2000
PRISM data is given in millimeters and was downloaded from
www.rgis.unm.edu (1-km resolution)
This watershed receives much more precipitation in the
higher elevations found in the northeast and the western
edges. The average annual precipitation is not large and this
agrees with the monsoon related precipitation shown by the
stream gauge.
Vegetation data was downloaded from
www.rgis.unm.edu, then regrouped.
The Jemez River and Rio Puerco appear to be
the tributaries that should be of greatest
concern for annual calculations, predictions,
and resource allocation decisions.
1980
Other significant watersheds also exhibiting this
response: Rio Salado
GIS can be used to explain the responses
of the watersheds by examining the
vegetation and precipitation.