USACE-IWR Report: 'Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) & U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Water Security through Resilience'

Dr. Will Logan, whom I have known for 20+ years, wrote this report. Good to see the Corps address this issue and happy to see that the Institute for Water Resources (IWR), the Corps' 'water think tank' tackled the chore with Will in charge. Will, a hydrogeologist, leads IWR's International Center for Integrated Water Resources Management (a UNESCO Category II center) or ICIWaRM.

Download USACE_MAR_2020April

Here is the blurb from the report's site:

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Institute for Water Resources (IWR) released a report titled Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Water Security through Resilience.

With the water needs of society increasing and becoming increasingly diverse, water management and planning are more challenging than ever. Water security in all its forms is as important, but seems progressively difficult to achieve. Additional water storage and flood risk management is needed, but major new surface infrastructure projects seem unlikely.  Water storage underground (managed aquifer recharge, or MAR) is an alternative to augment surface storage and increase resilience of USACE projects while improving the Nation’s water security.

MAR is a term that covers artificial recharge, aquifer storage and recovery, riverbank and riverbed filtration, groundwater banking, and other mechanisms of purposeful water recharge to aquifers for later recovery.  MAR use has grown rapidly over the last two decades, progressing from an often-experimental concept to a management tool used in over 1000 sites around the world.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and its partners have engaged, or considered engaging, in the use of MAR in a variety of settings and purposes, throughout the United States. These purposes include:

• Flood risk management -Recharge of floodwaters, in combination with surface storage, can dampen the flood peak.
• Aquatic ecosystem restoration - Discharging stored groundwater may help maintain timely environmental flows.
• Drought resilience - MAR can provide back-up storage for multi-year droughts without losses due to evaporation.
• Salt-water intrusion prevention - Replenishing coastal aquifers can provide additional agricultural and potable water supply while keeping salt water at a safe distance.
• Multi-purpose projects - Urban water projects can combine wastewater reuse, wetlands restoration, recreational and educational opportunities, and MAR.

This report examines how MAR has been, is being, or could be used in conjunction with USACE Civil Works water resources projects. The report summarizes some of USACE’s authorities for using MAR, provides numerous examples of USACE activities involving MAR, reviews the experience of other US government agencies and Departments, and considers how MAR can be integrated into the USACE civil works planning process and new initiatives.

Here is the report's Executive Summary (with a few figures added):

As opportunities diminish to build major new surface infrastructure for water storage in the United States, water resources management and planning are more challenging than ever. Much of the existing infrastructure is aging and in need of recapitalization. Funding for infrastructure projects is falling. And the water needs of society are becoming more diverse and often increasing, as evidenced by the large number of reallocation studies among U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) projects. Water security in all its forms is as important as ever, but seems ever more difficult to achieve.

But in the midst of these challenges lie opportunities as well. Temporarily storing water underground (Managed Aquifer Recharge, or MAR) for a variety of water management purposes has become progressively more important in the US and globally. This storage may be accomplished through recharge wells, spreading basins, dry river courses, and other techniques.

USACE increasingly finds itself engaged in MAR projects. In fact, this report documents that USACE or its state and local partners are considering, evaluating, testing or operating MAR or conjunctive use activities in at least 17 states—from the arid Southwest to the humid Southeast. Some of the General Congressional authorities that govern USACE activities, such as the Flood Control Act of 1944 and the Water Supply Act of 1958, are not necessarily inconsistent with the use of MAR; however, the Water Resources Development Act of 2016, in Sections 1116 and 1118, added new authorities for USACE to engage in MAR. In line with its current strategic documents, USACE and its partners are using, and can make greater use of, MAR to fulfill their water resources missions, including for drought planning and management, flood mitigation, reallocation studies and water supply planning, reservoir management, wetlands and ecosystem restoration, and other purposes.

This report presents conclusions and recommendations regarding the use of MAR to be considered by USACE leadership. They are intended to help USACE increase the resilience of its projects to stressors such as population growth, changing land use, and increasing climate variability. This may help the Nation to prepare, absorb, recover, and adapt to future adverse events or conditions, while extending the functional utility and life of existing water resources management infrastructure. In this sense, MAR may be considered a “least regrets” strategy for improving national water security.

These conclusions and recommendations are as follows:

Conclusion: USACE and its Partners are already involved in MAR, across a broad geographic and thematic landscape, but in an ad hoc manner

Recommendation: USACE should enhance its internal communications relative to MAR and conjunctive use. The creation of a community of practice, working group, and/or center of expertise may help to build such a community.

Recommendation: USACE should upgrade its internal capacity in MAR. It should consider developing one or more training courses on MAR and related topical areas for its planners, managers, economists and engineers. It should also encourage more informal on-the-job training and mentoring as appropriate, as well as participation in MAR focused conferences and workshops.

Conclusion: The Nation’s needs and USACE’s strategic directions suggest an important future role for MAR in USACE projects.

Recommendation: USACE leadership, from Headquarters to District offices, should encourage further evaluation of how MAR may help USACE to deliver sustainable and resilient water management solutions.

Conclusion: MAR combines well with USACE’s formal planning process and with new initiatives

Recommendation: USACE should consider MAR in conjunction with, not in lieu of, ongoing water resource management initiatives. In doing so, the additional storage created in the service of multiple stakeholders will not be at the expense of lives and property.

Conclusion: USACE has much to learn from other agencies, and the private sector, about MAR.

Recommendation: USACE should use current interagency agreements, subcommittees and other mechanisms to conduct seminars, webinars, meetings and, potentially, cooperative research with other entities to exchange knowledge, experience and lessons-learned in MAR.

Since the USACE is heavily involved in water storage it would make sense that MAR might be something they should pursue.

One minor point: like many online documents this report has a number of long URLs. The links are embedded in the text so that when viewed online, the links are hot. But if you are reading a hard copy and want to access the online docs you'll have trouble copying the links. So the Corps should have used a link shortener like bit.ly or tinyurl.com. This will make life easier for some (like me).  

Good job!

Enjoy!

"Certitude is not the test of certainty." - SCOTUS Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (quoted in @politico via @TheWeek)

Comments

[Michael]

My regards to Will!