Management of Surface Water and Groundwater Withdrawals to Maintain Environmental Stream Flows in Michigan
Publication: Watershed Management 2010: Innovations in Watershed Management under Land Use and Climate Change
Abstract
In 2008, the State of Michigan enacted legislation requiring that new or increased high-capacity withdrawals (greater than 100,000 gallons per day) from either surface water or groundwater be reviewed to prevent Adverse Resource Impacts (ARI). Science- based guidance was sought in defining how groundwater or surface-water withdrawals affect streamflow and in quantifying the relation between reduced streamflow and changes in stream ecology. The implementation of the legislation led to a risk-based system based on a gradient of risk, ecological response curves, and estimation of groundwater-surface water interaction. All Michigan streams are included in the legislation, and, accordingly, all Michigan streams were classified into management types defined by size of watershed, stream-water temperature, and predicted fish assemblages. Different streamflow removal percentages define risk-based thresholds allowed for each type. These removal percentages were informed by ecological response curves of characteristic fish populations and finalized through a legislative workgroup process. The assessment process includes an on-line screening tool that may be used to evaluate new or increased withdrawals against the risk-based zones and allows withdrawals that are not likely to cause an ARI to proceed to water-use registration. The system is designed to consider cumulative impacts of high-capacity withdrawals and to promote user involvement in water resource management by the establishment of water-user committees as cumulative withdrawals indicate greater potential for ARI in the watershed.
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Copyright
© 2010 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Apr 26, 2012
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Business management
- Ecosystems
- Environmental engineering
- Fish and fishery management
- Flow (fluid dynamics)
- Fluid dynamics
- Fluid mechanics
- Government
- Groundwater
- Groundwater management
- Hydrologic engineering
- Legislation
- Organizations
- Practice and Profession
- River engineering
- Rivers and streams
- Streamflow
- Surface water
- Water (by type)
- Water and water resources
- Water management
- Water policy
- Water resources
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