Fahmidah U. Ashraf
Assistant Professor, Bradley University
fashraf@bradley.eduBradleyUniversity
Role of Groundwater Stress in Water Stress
Water resource systems are faced with meeting the challenge of growing demands coupled with the potential for added stress from climate change in the coming decades. This module introduces students to the concept of water stress through a set of data- and hypothesis-driven learning activities that assess water supply, demand, and stresses over Illinois. The analysis is conducted at the scale of the eight-digit watershed hydrologic unit code (HUC8).
Enrollment is Closed
About This Course
The learning activities in this module guide students to examine water supply, both from surface and groundwater sources, and water use by different sectors (irrigation, municipal and industrial, and thermoelectric). Students calculate water stress indices at different HUC8 basins and identify regions with water availability or shortages. Acknowledging the alarming rates of groundwater depletion in many regions, students re-formulate the water stress indices focusing on groundwater, and identify how much each sector is responsible for groundwater use.
Topics Covered
(1) Analysis of water supply and demand (2) Analysis of stress on surface and groundwater systems (3) Sectoral analysis of water stresses (4) Impact of environmental flows (5) Analysis of groundwater depletions
Learning Objectives
At the end of this course, students should be able to (1) dentify the spatial distribution of surface and groundwater supply sources and the corresponding water demands by different sectors, (2) calculate different statistics on surface water supply and groundwater recharge available at the HUC8 scale, (3) relate stressed areas to the water supply and demand levels, (4) identify stressed groundwater and abundant surface water areas, (5 )compare stress calculations with groundwater field measurements
Prerequisites
N/A
Course Authors
Target Audience
Junior/Senior Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering Courses
Tools Needed
Computer with access to Internet, Excel
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: Does this course require programming skills, in what language?
No
Q2: Are there any external links that the learner can consult with?
See this external link for more information.
Q3: Can I adapt this course?
Contact the course authors to get a compressed file and import directly into your own course for further customization