Managing Navajo Water Resources with Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Robert Kirk, Principal Hydrologist Department of Water Resources Water Management Branch [email protected]

Navajo Nation Department of Water Resources Executive Branch Division Of Natural Resources

Department of Water Resources

Technical Construction & Operations Branch

Water Management Branch

Safety of Dams

Administration

What Is a Geographic Information System? "An organized collection of computer hardware, software, geographic data, and personnel designed to efficiently capture, store, update, manipulate, analyze, and display all forms of geographically referenced information." “A geographic information system (GIS) integrates hardware, software, and data for capturing, managing, analyzing, and displaying all forms of geographically referenced information.”, ESRI

Smart Maps!

A combination of geography and data that provides us ANSWERS that we use to make important DECISIONS.

Importance Aspects of GIS Management HARDWARE

SOFTWARE

DATA

PROCEDURES

ORGANIZATION

STAFF

1. WHAT TYPE OF GIS DO WE HAVE? The NNWMB has a full functioning GIS department. Currently running ArcGIS 10.2 on 18 computers using a floating license from the main server. Our users vary from users that just view the data to our advanced users that are able to perform full editing and analysis. In house training on ArcGIS is also a big part of using ArcGIS. Most of our technical reports contain products using GIS. Publications on the NNWMB website are produced using ArcGIS.

LAN-local area network -

MS Server 2003 on Dell Poweredge Server 2500

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30+ network PCs and peripherals (plotters, scanners, printers, etc..)

SOFTWARE -

ArcGIS 10.2: floating and stand alone licenses

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Operating Systems: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8

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ArcGIS Extensions: 3D Analyst, Spatial Analyst, GeoStatistical Analyst, GPS Analyst

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Office Software: MS Word, Excel, Powerpoint, ACCESS

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Specialized Software: Modflow, Surfer, Acrobat Professional, Adobe Photoshop, PDQ-Flowchart, FrontPage, GoogleEarth, HEC-RAS

DATA •

Wells and Springs

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Boundaries: chapters, county, watersheds, agencies, grazing districts, SWCD’s, etc..

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Surface hydrology

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Stock ponds, lakes and reservoirs

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Climate data – ACCESS, rainfall, snowfall, temperature, wind, climate zones, etc

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Soils

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Agriculture – Irrigation projects, historical irrigation projects

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Transportation-roads

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Land status as related to water litigation

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Water quality

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Geology

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Water Code - water use

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Water Library-LibraryWorld Database

DATA SETS 500+ Documented Coverages 1,000+ Undocumented Covers 1,700 Digital Raster Graphics (DRGs) 4,000 Digital Ortho Quarter Quads (DOQQs) 10 Major Databases – 1,000’S REC

2. HOW DO WE USE GIS? GIS APPLICATIONS? The NNWMB uses the GIS data to conduct advanced analysis of rain fall amounts, snowfall amounts, surface water locations & types of uses, well locations, well information including a wells database, water basins, watershed boundaries, and ground water information, Water projects such as current and future pipelines, waste water treatment plants, new wells and new development. GIS is also used to inventory irrigation projects and farmlands. Flood plain data is used to provide information to other entities for projects. Data from other departments is also used in all of our GIS projects, analysis, and GIS products.

Water Rights

Little Colorado River Basin (AZ & NM) San Juan River Basin (AZ & NM) Main Stem Colorado River Basin-upper and lower Rio San Jose (NM) Zuni River Basin (NM, AZ) San Juan River Basin (UT)

STUDIES AND ANALYSIS ON WATER RIGHTS, WATER SUPPLY PROJECTS, PIA, BASINS, AND WATER DEVELOPMENT

Regional Water Supply Projects - water rights negotiations & litigations -

water supply projects

Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project Navajo Municipal Water Project Southwestern Rural Water Supply Project Western Navajo Water Supply Project Ganado Regional Water Supply Project Page-LeChee Water Supply Project Tohajiilee Water Supply Project Navajo Mtn. Water Supply Project Many Mules Water Project

Regional Water Supply Project Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project Example GIS Project Application

Part of SJR-NM Settlement alternatives and routes analysis (EIS) Service area identification Present and future water demand Cost $$ Partners-City of Gallup and Jicarilla Apaches

March, 2013: Construction of Reach 12A of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project near Twin Lakes, NM.

OTHER APPLPICATIONS

Irrigation and Farming

Shiprock Irrigation Projects Ganado Irrigation Rehabilitation Project Many Farms Irrigation Project Red Lake Irrigation Kerley Valley ADWR Irrigation GIS Project Historical Irrigation

Irrigation and Farming Example GIS Project – Shiprock Irrigation Project

8,830 Acres Diversion Right: 48,550 afy Depletion Right: 21,280 afy 1868 Priority $15.7 Million for Rehabilitation Alternate Water Supply

GIS Projects and Databases Wells Database Hydrographic Survey Report Databases Reservation Schools EPA-Trash Dumps/AML/PWSID/ C-Aquifer Study Others

Source: USBR

GIS Projects and Databases Example GIS Project –Wells Database

On-Going Project Over 8,400 Wells and Springs Conjunction with NN Water Code Well Searches and Information

Wells Database Map

Special Projects – GIS Applications Drought Contingency Plan Drought Monitoring-Response-Mitigation Chapter Water Plans Watershed Restoration Projects Aquifer Studies: Navajo and Coconino Aquifers Floodplain Analysis Others

Water Monitoring & Inventory

Drought Applications

-Drought Plan (2003) and Report (2002) -Drought Monitoring & Response -Drought Mitigation

Chapter Water Plans To identify the community’s existing water supply and to assess future water demands. NDWR is working with Chapters to prepare Chapter Water Plans NGWSP service area, NM Chapters, Bennett Freeze Chapters, District 1, District 3, and District 5

3. IN THE FUTURE, WHERE DO WE SEE OUR GIS CAPABILITIES GOING AND.. •

DWR-WMB will continue to create and collect data to enhance and further our GIS capabilities, and will be striving to develop more complete GIS datasets that can be easily shared with other entities.

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Streamline data input from other departments so we can produce more up-todata GIS datasets

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Scanning data, such as well folders, containing a variety of documents that would easily be shared with other departments and Navajo public, via ArcGIS Server and internet

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Training GIS technology

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Equipment and Systems upgrade to keep up with Technology

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More DWR employees having access and ability to use ArcGIS and GIS technology.

TYPES OF DATA WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ?? • Comprehensive CLUP from Chapters • Future economic or community development plans from the Navajo Nation. • Future Housing and or infrastructure development plans from NHA and Tribal Housing programs. • Latest Utility datasets from NTUA, BIA, and others • Sensitive or protected areas from HPD, F&W, Archeology • Updated land status, homesite and business site leases. • Historical land use or irrigation information from BIA. • Latest and more accurate flood plain data covering the entire Navajo Nation • Forest rehabilitation plans for Navajo Nation Forest, especially in the Asaayi Lake watershed area.

RECOMMENDATIONS COORDINATION GIS data clearinghouse Comprehensive planning GIS Resources and funding GIS Training NN Licensing or agreements with ESRI NN GIS Summit or NN GIS Conference GIS at the Chapter (local) level

Managing and protecting our water resources has not been easy, but critical Use of GIS applications has eased the challenge of water management With Navajo lands covering over 27,000 square miles, GIS applications have been used to map water resources, perform hydrologic analysis, some modeling, HSR, flood plain delineation, and climate analysis GIS HAS BECOME OUR CORNERSTONE FOR SECURING OUR WATER RIGHTS, DROUGHT PLANNING & MITIGATION, AND IMPROVED THE OVERALL MANAGEMENT OF THE NN’S WATER RESOURCES FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS!

Questions & Contact Information GIS-Computer Section Contact(s): Maurice Upshaw, GIS Supervisor [email protected] Caroline Harvey, GIS Analyst [email protected] Robert Kirk, Principal Hydrologist [email protected] Webpage: http://frontiernet.net/~nndwr_wmb/ Mailing Address: P.O. Box 678 Fort Defiance, AZ 86504 Phone: FAX:

928-729-4004 928-729-4126