Abstract
Challenges faced by water resource systems are multi-faceted. The problem can be even more pronounced in a dry continent like Australia where the water resources can often be afflicted by high salinity and turbidity. Therefore, modern water resource systems require to appropriately manage both water quality and quantity. This study aims to illustrate the trade-offs between water quantity and quality in a reservoir, based on decisions to harvest different inflow sources. Taylors Lake of the Grampians reservoir system in Western Victoria, Australia was chosen as the case study for this research as it is sufficiently complex and includes many of the contemporary water resources challenges seen around the world. Different operational scenarios were analysed which included increasingly stringent water quality criteria before the water was harvested or otherwise allowed to by-pass the storage. The study suggests that selective harvesting of water can be an option to improve the overall and long-term water quality within a reservoir, but stringent water quality measures can lead to an associated loss of overall water quantity. This research study provides useful insight to water planners and stakeholders in similar catchment settings around the world, to identify water harvesting regimes with competing water quality constraints.
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Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP), Victoria Australia, Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water Corporation, Victoria Australia, Wimmera Catchment Management Authority Victoria Australia.
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08 December 2021
A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-021-03019-7
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Acknowledgements
This work is supported by both Australian Research Training Program and Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water (GWMWater). Authors wish to acknowledge eWater Ltd. for their technical support. Authors express their gratitude to the anonymous reviewers for their time and effort to improve the quality of the paper.
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This work is financially supported by Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water Corporation (GWMWater).
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Conceptualization: A. Barton and S. Dey, Method: S. Dey and A. Barton, Data collection and analysis: S. Dey, Writing original draft preparation: S. Dey, Writing- editing and review: S. Dey, H. Kandra, A. Barton, A. Bagirov and K. Wilson.
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Dey, S., Barton, A., Kandra, H. et al. Analysis of Water Quantity and Quality Trade-Offs to Inform Selective Harvesting of Inflows in Complex Water Resource Systems. Water Resour Manage 35, 4149–4165 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-021-02936-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-021-02936-x