Old Ideas, New Applications: Expanding the State of the Practice

This paper describes three projects in which analytical tools were developed to assist decision makers in operating large-scale water resource systems. Position analysis models were developed for the Central Valley in California and the Savannah River in South Carolina. These models are being used to access the risk of reservoir storage falling below desired levels. A simulation model was developed for the lower Colorado River to schedule hourly releases through the powerhouses, considering the operations of Hoover, Davis and Parker dams and the grid to which power is delivered. Preliminary testing of the model indicates a huge potential to increase the value of power generated.