Water Resources System Modeling and Analysis Using the Value-based Water Resources System (VWRS) Model.

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The goal of the applicant's research program is to develop a Value-based Water Resource System (VWRS) model for the Prairie Provinces. The proposed VWRS model will couple the hydrological and the societal aspects of water resources in the Saskatchewan River Basin, as the main study area, in one integrated modeling tool. The model will allow for the assessment of the availability, as well as the allocation scenarios, of water resources for competing users under varying and non-stationary conditions. The varying conditions could be natural (e.g., climate change) or due to human intervention as a result of possible change of the societal perception of the value of water. This novel modeling tool and concept promotes and allows for a paradigm shift from studying traditional water budget to quantifying virtual and value-based water budget; i.e., the all-inclusive balance of water and water-dependent commodities and services. The South Saskatchewan River Basin (SSRB) is a trans-boundary interprovincial river basin, and it is an ideal case to represent the complexity of water resources systems. Multiple sectors and water uses; such as agricultural, municipal, industrial, mining, hydropower, and environmental flow requirements spread across the basin in Alberta and Saskatchewan. The significant spatial variability in the level of development, the future plans, and the need of water places different values on water across the basin. Alberta Environment and Saskatchewan Watershed Authority use the Water Resources Management Model (WRMM) to simulate the behaviour of the water resources system in Alberta and Saskatchewan, and to make quantitative allocation decisions. The proposed VWRS model will emulate the WRMM as the blue water component of the system (water taken from the rivers and reservoirs), in addition to explicitly considering the green water (soil water used by agriculture), and track water-dependent products and services (energy, mining, crops, and industrial products) in the system. This work is expected to be a timely research that can help both provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan develop a water value-based priority system for allocation.