Storage Reservoir Behavior in the United States
Publication: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 125, Issue 5
Abstract
Numerous experiments are performed that characterize the behavior of individual storage reservoirs across the United States. Storage-yield curves based on annual and monthly flow records are compared to show that the standardized net inflow and the coefficient of variation of net inflow Cv completely characterize the refill properties of storage reservoirs. For example, these experiments indicate that for any river with Cv > 0.8, the design capacity of a reservoir is determined by annual fluctuations in streamflow alone, regardless of its size. Two new indices of resilience and vulnerability are derived for reservoirs fed by correlated lognormal inflows. Previous studies document that inflows to reservoirs in the United States may be approximated by correlated lognormal inflows. Combining these results with a recent inventory of thousands of storage reservoirs across the United States, along with regional climate and streamflow databases, we explore the behavior of individual storage reservoirs. We compare the resilience, reliability, yield, and vulnerability of individual storage reservoirs under existing scenarios and one possible future climate scenario.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 125 • Issue 5 • September 1999
Pages: 245 - 254
History
Received: Jun 14, 1998
Published online: Sep 1, 1999
Published in print: Sep 1999
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