Hydrodynamic, Sediment and Water Quality
Model Framework to Support Resource
Management Planning for the Sacramento
San Joaquin River Delta
5th National Conference on Ecosystem Restoration
NCER 2013
S. Lu, P. Craig, C. Wallen, Z. Liu, A.
Stoddard, W. McAnnally and E. Maak
US Army Corps of Engineers
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Goals for Resource Management
 CALFED Act of 2007 directed USACE to address
resource management issues in the Delta with
California Department of Water Resources
 Surface water modeling framework developed to
support planning efforts to meet co-equal goals for
sustainable resource management
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Ensure availability of abundant clean water supply for
municipal and agricultural uses
Restoration and maintenance of ecological resources
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EFDC
Hydrodynamics
Sediment Transport
Water Quality
Sediment Bed
WQ-Ecological Targets
Management Scenarios
Flow, Loads
Watershed
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EFDC Overview
Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC)
EFDC Model
Hydrodynamics
Water
Quality
Sediment
Transport
Toxics
Sediment
Diagenesis
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Delta Water
Quality Model
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16,510 horizontal cells
Four vertical layers
2003-2004
Tides: Carquinez Strait
6 Rivers (USGS)
5 Pump stations
4 Structures
15 Wastewater Plants
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Sediment Bed
TOC & TON
(Pilon, 2006)
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10 Sediment
Diagenesis
Zones
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Water
Quality
Calibration
Validation
Stations
2003-2004
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TSS (Surface)
Mallard Island
2004
Calibration Results: Time Series Summary
200.0
Legend
175.0
MAL-Model (Layer 4)
MAL-Data
Total Suspended Solids (mg/l)
150.0
RMS=12.6 mg/L; Relative RMS Error=14%
125.0
100.0
75.0
50.0
25.0
0.0
Jan-04
Feb-04
Mar-04
Apr-04
May-04
Jun-04
Date
Jul-04
Aug-04
Sep-04
Oct-04
Nov-04
Dec-04
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Wind Waves & Sediment Transport
 Improved simulation of
sediment transport for
shallow water and wind
wave mixing
 Help design structures:
breakwater, storm
surge barriers, manage
wetlands
 Help design physical or
vegetative barriers to
reduce sediment
suspension & wave action
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Wind Effects: Suisun Bay
500
TSS without wind-waves
450
Total Suspended Solids (mg/l)
400
Legend
D7-Model (Layer 4, with wind wave)
D7-Model (Layer 4, without wind wave)
D7-Data
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
16-Jan-04
16-Mar-04
16-May-04
16-Jul-04
Year 2004
16-Sep-04
16-Nov-04
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Dissolved Oxygen
(Surface) 2003
P8-Stockton Deep Channel
RMS = 1.6 mg/L; Relative RMS Error = 22%
15.00
Legend
P8-Model (Layer 4)
P8-Data
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/l)
12.50
10.00
7.50
5.00
2.50
0.00
Jan-03
Mar-03
May-03
Jul-03
Time (days)
Sep-03
Nov-03STRONG
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Dissolved Oxygen
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Ammonium (Surface)
C3A – Sacramento R
2003-2004
RMS=0.07 mg/L
Relative RMS Error=11%
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Ammonium – Nitrogen (mg/L)
SSJ Delta Water Quality: Sacramento River-Suisun Bay Drapeline
American River
Observed data
Sacramento WWTP
C3A
Ammonium
Profile: July
2003
D22
D6
D10
Cell Indexes
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Ammonia Profile: Sacramento River
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Findings
 Bay-Delta hydrodynamic model- good agreement
with water level, salinity & water temperature
 Delta WQ model- TSS and most WQ variables show
reasonable agreement with observed data
 Delta WQ model reasonably depicts key large scale
water quality transport & processes
 Delta hydrodynamic/WQ model linked to lower
trophic level model (CASM) to describe interaction of
flow, transport, salinity & WQ on food web resources
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Summary
 Model framework provides US Army Corps of
Engineers, other State/Federal/local agencies and
Stakeholders with advanced modeling tool for
resource planning & restoration evaluations
 Public investment by USACE in the Bay-Delta & Delta
EFDC models can be leveraged to support
State/Federal/Local regulatory, policy and ecological
restoration efforts
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Discussion
Contact Information:
Dynamic Solutions
Andrew Stoddard
[email protected]
(540) 338-3642
USACE – Sacramento District
Gene Maak
[email protected]
(916) 557-7020
US Army Corps of Engineers
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