Source: UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING submitted to
MANAGEMENT AND POLICY CHALLENGES IN A WATER-SCARCE WORLD
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1006679
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
WYO-542-15
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
W-3190
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Jun 2, 2015
Project End Date
Sep 30, 2019
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Hansen, KR.
Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING
1000 E UNIVERSITY AVE DEPARTMENT 3434
LARAMIE,WY 82071-2000
Performing Department
Agricultural And Applied Economics
Non Technical Summary
Water is a focal point of science, economics and policy debates in the western United States. It is also a resource of growing concern in other regions, such as the southeast and central U.S. In light of climate change, depletion of major aquifers, urban growth in water-scarce areas, and increasing demand for environmental goods and services, creative approaches are needed for reallocating water efficiently among competing uses. Without innovation in water management policies and techniques, water-related conflicts between nations, states, agricultural, urban and environmental uses, as well as between ground and surface water irrigators, will continue to intensify and expand. We seek to undertake research and extension activities that further our collective understanding of the relationships between ecological, social, and economic outcomes as they relate to water resources, in the three following ways.Objective 1. Climate change, declining aquifers, and rising public interest in ecosystem services are placing pressure on the 'efficiency' of water use in irrigated agriculture. Many economic factors influence farm-level water use, e.g., input/output prices, producer characteristics, and institutional policies. Biophysical characteristics such as saturated thickness of an aquifer, climate variability, field size and slope are also thought to be important drivers of water use and its heterogeneity across farms. With high-resolution bio-physical and water-use data, and new developments in behavioral and experimental economic theory, we can now use empirical data to test for the importance of potential drivers. This will, in turn, allow us to update our analytical and optimization models to reflect an improved understanding of the influence of biophysical and economic factors (and their interactions) on water management decisions. Improved models will also generate more accurate estimates of the farm-level impacts of climate change and proposed water policies. Changes in farm-level water use decisions can affect other social goals, such as increased streamflow, reduced aquifer depletion, and aquatic habitat protection.Objective 2. Increased water extractions for agricultural and urban uses, combined with emerging demands for environment protection, are increasing competition in the western U.S. for already scarce water resources. Climate change is projected to exacerbate water scarcity and increase the recurrence and intensity of drought events. These circumstances call for development of methods that support the design of sustainable water management policies. To improve water management in semi-arid and arid regions, research must make use of recent advances in multiple disciplines to develop relevant new theories, numerical modeling frameworks, and empirical strategies. Over the last few years, there has been a rapid increase in both remotely-sensed and field-level sensor data, as well as new econometric and statistical techniques to deal with such data. At the same time, there is growing interest in incorporating behavioral insights about irrigation decision-making into dynamic economic analyses.We seek to develop modeling and analytical frameworks that: i) explain observed spatial and dynamic patterns of water use in agriculture better than existing models; ii) can be linked transparently to coupled natural-human system models that incorporate biophysical complexity; and iii) can provide relevant policy analyses for agricultural groundwater management. Activities under Obj. 2 will be informed by field-level data from Obj. 1, and will provide modeling and analytical support to Obj. 3.Objective 3. Alternative water management institutions and policies will be analyzed in the context of increased demand for water quantity/quality, increased supply-variability, and changing technology. This will enhance understanding of the drivers of legal, institutional, and policy change. It will also enable prescriptive statements about water institutions and water policy, which will provide policymakers with options for increasing society's capacity to deal with water-related change.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
6050210301080%
6016030301020%
Knowledge Area
601 - Economics of Agricultural Production and Farm Management; 605 - Natural Resource and Environmental Economics;

Subject Of Investigation
0210 - Water resources; 6030 - The farm as an enterprise;

Field Of Science
3010 - Economics;
Goals / Objectives
Characterize bio-physical, socio-economic, and political/legal factors (and interactions of these factors) that influence water-use decisions and related market or non-market outcomes. Develop or enhance quantitative methods to address emerging water management issues. Evaluate and compare alternative water management strategies and institutions.
Project Methods
Project 1. Evaluate field/farm-level water demand under various climatic and policy conditions. Together with other W3190 researchers, Peck will develop a stochastic optimization model to analyze water-use under various climate and policy conditions. Results will be compared to those from statistical analyses of actual on-farm water-use. Water use data employed in these analyses will represent multiple locations with different policies, such as prior appropriation, correlative rights with allocation limits, and water trading. Multiple years with varying climate conditions will be included.Project 2. Detecting complex structural patterns in hydrologic data. Water researchers must become thoroughly acquainted with available data to construct informative models that successfully simulate complex real-world behavior. Hansen and Peck will apply techniques developed by other W3190 researchers to Wyoming watersheds. These techniques link anthropogenic and climatic forcings with hydrologic processes of interest, such as droughts, stream flows, aquifer levels, water quality, and water-related ecosystem services.Project 3: Hydro-economic modeling of alternative drought management policies. Hansen and other University of Wyoming researchers will develop an integrated hydro-economic model of the Upper Colorado Basin to analyze the effects of drought on water resources and users, and assess the performance of alternative drought management policies.Project 4. Test alternative institutions' ability to provide ecosystem services. Markets can improve other aspects of water use that have historically been addressed outside of the market economy (or not addressed at all), such as re-allocating water to environmental purposes, improving water quality, governing surface and ground-water interactions, and compensating for provision of water-based ecosystem services (e.g., flood prevention and control, reduced erosion, and improved riparian habitat). Together with other Wyoming researchers and policymakers, Hansen will implement a field-experiment to initiate a pilot 'payment for ecosystem services' (PES) program in southwestern Wyoming for several ecosystem services, one of which is hydrologic services.

Progress 06/02/15 to 09/30/19

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience varies by product and project, but all of these are the target for at least one of our products: Water resource researchers nationally and internationally, Wyoming State policymakers, Wyoming landowners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Objective 1. Hansen and Wyoming Extension colleagues conducted small-acreage landowner workshops on water rights and responsibilities vis-à-vis water. They also presented this information at a statewide forum on water in Casper, WY. The workshops and forum presentation were well-attended and well-received by participants. Objective 2. Hansen and Peck had two M.S. students working on the farm-level economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies in southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). Objective 3. Hansen has an M.S. graduate student working on the analysis of the ecological and economic trade-offs associated with programs encouraging voluntary water conservation practices on irrigated lands that would allow Wyoming to meet its obligations to downstream states under the Colorado River Compact. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Objective 1. Landowner workshops on small-acreage water rights. Objective 2. Sponsored and organized a workshop on groundwater management in southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). Objective 3. With UW Extension colleauges, facilitated a meeting of key stakeholders and three public community meetings in the Wyoming portion of the Colorado River Basin on the topic of water management and compliance with the Colorado River Compact. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 2. Under the direction of W3190 members Hansen (WY) and Peck (USDA-ARS), a graduate student is analyzing the economic, hydrologic, and policy conditions under which adoption of water use efficiency technologies could improve farm net revenues in southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). Objective 3. Hansen is analyzing the ecological and economic trade-offs associated with programs encouraging voluntary water conservation practices on irrigated rangelands that would allow Wyoming to meet its obligations to downstream states under the Colorado River Compact. Collaborators include Trout Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, conservation districts and ranchers in the area. A graduate student is involved in this research. Objective 3. Hansen is assessing the regional economic impacts of water transfers in the Wyoming portion of the Colorado River Basin, to assist water rights holders and other stakeholders in evaluating a potential demand management program (water conservation) in the region. Objective 3. With University of Wyoming Extension colleagues, Hansen is assisting the Wyoming State Engineer's Office to assess stakeholder interest in a water demand management program, which could help Wyoming and other Upper Colorado River Basin states meet their obligations under the Colorado River Compact.

Publications

  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Hansen, K. 2019. Book Review of Towards Tradable Water Rights: Water Law and Policy Reform in China. Water Economics and Policy 5(3): 1-3. DOI: 10.1142/S2382624X1980002X.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Hansen, K. Wyoming Conservation Exchange. Invited presentation to the Alberta Grasslands Conservation Markets Symposium. Calgary, Alberta, Canada (November 19-20, 2019).
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Yeatman, E., K. Hansen, G. Paige, A. MacKinnon, and J. Albers. The Economic and Ecological Tradeoffs of Agricultural Water Use Demand Management in the Upper Green River Basin of Wyoming. Invited presentation at the American Water Resources Association Annual Meeting, Salt Lake City, UT (November 3-6, 2019); and the Upper Colorado River Basin Water Forum, Grand Junction, CO (November 13-14, 2019). Presentations by Yeatman.
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Hansen, K. 2019. Adapting to a Changing Customer Base: Small-Acreage Landowners and Irrigation Districts. Wyoming Water Association Annual Meeting. Casper, WY (October 17, 2019).
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Hansen, K. 2019. Water Leasing Across the Western United States. Wyoming Water Association Annual Meeting. Casper, WY (October 16, 2019).
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Grahmann, A., B. Lee, C. Carter, V. Sharma, and K. Hansen. Real-Time Energy Monitoring Pilot Program to Improve Understanding of Irrigation Costs and Water Use. Poster presentation at UW SAREC Field Day. Lingle, WY (August 21, 2019). Presentation by A. Grahmann.
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Willis, K., K. Hansen, D. Peck, S. Miller, and V. Sharma. 2019. Farm-Level Impacts of Alternative Groundwater Management Strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in Southeastern Wyoming. Presentation at UW Extension Groundwater Management Workshop. Cheyenne, WY (May 7, 2019). Presentation by Willis.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Guerrero, B., K. Willis, K. Hansen, D. Peck. Regional Economic Analysis of Crop Production in Laramie County, Wyoming. Presidential Symposium on understanding the role of water in farm?dependent communities at the Mid-Continent Regional Science Association. Madison, WI (June 4-6, 2019). Presentation by B. Guerrero.
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Hansen, K. 2019. Wyoming Water Rights and Small-Acreages. University of Wyoming Extension, Small-Acreage Irrigation Seminar. Riverton, WY (September 5, 2019), Lander, WY (September 12, 2019), and Wyoming Water Association Annual Meeting in Casper, WY (October 23, 2019).
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Willis, K., K. Hansen, D. Peck, S. Miller and V. Sharma. 2019. Farm-Level Impacts of Alternative Groundwater Management Strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in Southeastern Wyoming. Poster Presentation at Organic Farming Conference. Cheyenne, WY (February 27-8, 2019). Presentation by K. Willis.


Progress 10/01/17 to 09/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience varies by product and project, but all of these are the target for at least one of our products: Water resource researchers nationally and internationally, Wyoming State policymakers, Wyoming landowners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Objective 1: Hansen and Wyoming Extension colleagues conducted small-acreage landowner workshops on water rights and responsibilities vis-à-vis water. The workshops were well-attended and well-received by participants. Objective 2: Hansen and Peck have an M.S. student working on the farm-level economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies in southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). Objective 3: Hansen has an M.S. graduate student working on the analysis of the ecological and economic trade-offs associated with programs encouraging voluntary water conservation practices on irrigated rangelands that would allow Wyoming to meet its obligations to downstream states under the Colorado River Compact. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Objective 1: Landowner workshops on small-acreage water rights. Objective 2: A Zoom-accessible MS thesis defense on the economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies in Laramie County. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1: Conduct presentations and develop additional training materials for UW Extension personnel and small-acreage landowners regarding water rights and responsibilities in the semi-arid western U.S. Objective 2: Make significant progress towards evaluating the direct community impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies in Laramie County in Southeastern Wyoming. Objective 2. Complete a real-time energy monitoring pilot program to improve producer understanding of irrigation costs and water use in conjunction with research and extension personnel in Nebraska and Wyoming. Objective 2. Complete an initial analysis of the ecological and economic tradeoffs of water conservation in the Upper Green River Basin and begin an economic assessment of such water conservation programs in the same region.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: In collaboration with W3190 member Brozovic (NE), Hansen has begun a project to examine the potential for real-time energy metering to improve on-farm decision-making regarding water management in groundwater-fed southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). Real-time energy meters have been installed on irrigators' pumps in the region and one season's worth of data has been collected. Objective 2: Under the direction of W3190 members Hansen (WY) and Peck (USDA-ARS), a graduate student completed her M.S. thesis on the farm-level economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies in southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). The student is currently presenting her results to irrigators, conservation district staff, and SEO representatives in the region. Hansen (WY) and colleagues are developing a regional hydro-economic model to examine the community-level impacts of developing alternative groundwater management strategies in southeastern Wyoming (Ogallala Aquifer). Collaborators include local irrigators, conservation district staff, and SEO representatives in the region. Objective 3: Hansen is analyzing the ecological and economic trade-offs associated with programs encouraging voluntary water conservation practices on irrigated rangelands that would allow Wyoming to meet its obligations to downstream states under the Colorado River Compact. Collaborators include Trout Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, conservation districts and ranchers in the area.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Willis, K., K. Hansen and D. Peck. Farm-Level Impacts of Alternative Groundwater Management Strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in Southeastern Wyoming. Selected Poster Presentation at the Western Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting. Anchorage, AK (June 24-26, 2018, 2018). Presentation by K. Willis.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K. 2018. Wyoming Water Rights and Small-Acreages. University of Wyoming Extension, Small-Acreage Irrigation Seminar. Torrington, WY (April 26, 2018), Sheridan, WY (May 3, 2018), and Pinedale, WY (September 6, 2018).
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K. 2018. Real-Time Energy Monitoring Pilot Program to Improve Producers Understanding of Irrigation Costs and Water Use. SAREC Field Day. Lingle, WY (August 22, 2018).
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K. 2018. Who Gets to Drink? University of Wyoming Saturday University Seminar. Pinedale, WY (March 1, 2018) and Jackson, WY (March 3, 2018).
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K. 2018. Adapting to a Changing Customer Base: Irrigation Districts and Small-Acreage Landowners. UW Extension Agriculture and Horticulture Team Train-the-Trainer Session. Casper, WY (January 19, 2018).
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K. 2017. Monitoring Energy Use to Reduce Irrigation Costs. UW Extension High Plains Crop Convention. Torrington, WY (November 21, 2017).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K., E. Duke, C. Bond, M. Purcell and G. Paige. 2018. Landowner Preferences for a Payment-for-Ecosystem Services Program in Southwestern Wyoming. Ecological Economics 146: 240-9.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Khadem, M, C. Roug�, J.J. Harou, K.M. Hansen, J. Medellin-Azuara and J.R. Lund. 2018. Estimating the economic value of inter-annual reservoir storage in water resource systems. Water Resources Research. 10.1029/2017WR022336
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Willis, K., K. Hansen, D. Peck, S. Miller and V. Sharma. 2018. Farm-Level Imapcts of Alternative Groundwater Management Strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in Southeastern Wyoming. Poster Presentation at SAREC Field Day. Lingle, WY (August 22, 2018). Presentation by K. Willis.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hansen, K. and V. Hovhannisyan. Modeling Reservoir Management in the Upper Green River Basin of Southwestern Wyoming. Selected Paper Presentation at the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association Annual Meeting. Washington DC (August 5-7, 2018).
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Willis, K., K. Hansen and D. Peck. Direct Community-Level Impacts of Alternative Groundwater Management Strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in Southeastern Wyoming. Selected Poster Presentation at the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association Annual Meeting. Washington DC (August 5-7, 2018).


Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience varies by product and project, but all of these are the target for at least one of our products: Water resource researchers nationally and internationally, Wyoming State policymakers, Wyoming landowners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Objective 1. Hansen and Wyoming Extension colleagues developed a small-acreage landowner irrigation handbook designed to help new small-acreage landowners understand their rights and responsibilities with respect to their prior appropriation-style water rights in a semi-arid environment. They also began developing trainings for other Extension personnel and small-acreage landowners. Objective 2. An agricultural economics M.S. student working under the direction of Dr. Hansen is analyzing the economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in southeastern Wyoming. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Objective 1. Hansen and UW Extension colleagues published a handbook on water rights and how to use them appropriately targeted to small-acreage landowners. Objective 2. Hansen co-organized a special session at Universities Council on Water Resources 2017 Annual Meeting (with D. Peck, USDA Northern Plains Climate Hub Director). "Groundwater Management in a Changing Environment." Fort Collins, CO (June 2017). Objective 3. Hansen was a guest co-editor (with K. Schoengold of University of Nebraska-Lincoln) for a special issue of Water (2017 Vol. 9 Issue 3; ISSN 2073-4441). "Water Management Strategies for Addressing Long-Term Drought and Climate Uncertainty." The special issue was based on an October 2015 Salt Lake City conference (cosponsored by W3190, WERA 1020, and Western States Water Council) that Hansen co-organized. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 2. Complete an analysis of the farm-level economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in southeastern Wyoming, and make significant progress towards evaluating the direct community impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies for the same region. Objective 2. Undertake a real-time energy monitoring pilot program to improve producer understanding of irrigation costs and water use, in conjunction with research and extension personnel in Nebraska and Wyoming. Objective 2. Make significant progress in exploring the ecosystem service costs and benefits of flood irrigation in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Objective 1. Conduct presentations and develop additional training materials for UW Extension personnel and small-acreage landowners regarding water rights and responsibilities in the semi-arid western U.S. Further explore ways in which UW Extension can assist irrigation districts deal with their changing customer base (fewer extensive ranches, more small-acreage taps).

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 2. Hansen developed and submitted a USDA-NIFA proposal to examine opportunities for improved management of water resources in the Upper Colorado River Basin with colleagues at Utah State University and Colorado State University (pending). Objective 2. Hansen and Wyoming colleagues sought and acquired funding to explore the ecosystem service costs and benefits of flood irrigation in the Upper Colorado River Basin (Kemmerer Fellowship through the UW Haub School for the Environment).

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Hansen, K. 2016. Book Review of Golden Rules: The Origins of California Water Law in the Gold Rush. Water Economics and Policy 2(3): 1-4.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Carter, C., K. Hansen, W. Kelley and L. Pauley. 2017. Irrigation Handbook for Small-Acreage Landowners in Wyoming. University of Wyoming Extension. Ed: J. Thompson.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Hansen, K. 2017. Monitoring Energy Use to Reduce Irrigation Costs. UW Extension High Plains Crop Convention. Torrington, WY (November 21, 2017).
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Hansen, K., D. Peck, and K. Willis. Alternative Groundwater Management Strategies over the Ogallala Aquifer in Southeastern Wyoming. Invited presentation at the Universities Council on Water Resources Annual Meeting. Fort Collins, CO (June 2017). Presentation by D. Peck.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Hansen, K. Obstacles to Moving Water Around in the Colorado River Basin: A Headwaters Perspective. Invited presentation at the 2017 Water for Food Global Conference. Lincoln, NE (April 11, 2017).
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Willis, K., K. Hansen, D. Peck and S. Glendenning. 2017. Water Use and Management in Laramie County, WY. Invited poster presentation at the UW Extension 2017 Organic Farming Conference. Cheyenne, WY (February 2017). Presentation by K. Willis.


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience varies by product and project, but all of these are the target for at least one of our products: Water resource researchers nationally and internationally, Wyoming State policymakers, Wyoming landowners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Objective 1. Peck and Wyoming colleagues received a grant from University of Wyoming to fund and mentor one under-represented domestic minority graduate student, to develop an agricultural management plan for the Wind River Indian Reservation. Objective 3. A graduate student of Hansen's is working to assess the economic impacts of alternative groundwater management strategies in Laramie County. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Objective 3. A popular press article and video on the non-agricultural benefits of flood irrigation were published in a natural resource management magazine with regional distribution (publication in 2016). Objective 3. Hansen presented results of a study on optimal reservoir management in southwestern Wyoming (which is a headwaters of the Colorado Basin) to natural resource economists at an internaitonal conference (submission of a related paper to a peer-reviewed journal anticipated for 2017). Objective 3. A scientific article on the non-agricultural benefits of flood irrigation is in development (submission to a peer-reviewed journal anticipated for 2017). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 2. Hansen will continue work on optimal reservoir management in southwestern Wyoming, which is a headwaters of the Colorado River Basin. Objective 3. Hansen will continue work on an economic analysis on alternative groundwater management scenarios.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1. Peck et al. are creating an Agricultural Resource Management Plan for the Wind River Reservation, with the Tribal Water Eng. Office and interdisciplinary working group. Objective 1. Peck is serving as an Associate Editor at "Water Resources Research." Objective 1. Hansen and Schoengold (Nebraska) are co-guest editing a 2016 special issue of "Water," based on the October 2015 Salt Lake City conference co-sponsored with WSWC. Objective 2. Hansen and Edwards (Utah) are co-PIs on a USDA-NIFA proposal to examine opportunities for improved management of water resources in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Objective 3. Hansen and stakeholder colleagues established an environmental market platform (Wyoming Conservation Exchange) to trade sage-grouse habitat and water quality credits.

Publications

  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Blevins, S., K. Hansen, G. Paige, and A. MacKinnon. 2016. The True Value of Flood Irrigation: Whats Seen as Wasteful Water Use Has Hidden Benefits. Western Confluence: Natural Resource Science and Management in the West. UW Ruckelshaus Institute publication, Laramie, WY, pp. 38-40.
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Hansen, K. 2016. Meeting the Challenge of Water Scarcity in the Western U.S. In Competition for Water Resources: Experiences and Management Approaches in the US and Europe (J. Ziolkowska. and J. Peterson, editors). Elsevier: Cambridge, MA.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Kim, C.S., R.M. Adams and D. Peck. 2016. Multiyear Discrete Stochastic Programming with a Fuzzy Semi-Markov Process. Applied Mathematics 7:482-495.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Eiswerth, M., G. van Kooten and K. Hansen. Maximizing Returns from Payments for Ecosystem Services: Incorporating Cross-Land Manager External Effects. Invited Presentation at the Western Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting. Victoria, BC, Canada (June 2016). Presentation by M. Eiswerth.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Igarashi, Y. and K. Hansen. Modeling Reservoir Management in the Upper Green River Basin of Southwestern Wyoming. Invited Presentation at the Western Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting. Victoria, BC, Canada (June 2016).


Progress 06/02/15 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience varies by product and project, but all of these are the target for at least one of our products: Water resource researchers nationally and internationally, Wyoming State policymakers, Wyoming landowners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Objective 1. Peck, Paige (WERA 1020 member), and colleagues funded an under-represented domestic minority graduate student at the University of Wyoming to develop an agricultural management plan for the Wind River Indian Reservation. Objective 3. A graduate student of Hansen's completed a study of alternative policies to help irrigation districts store water in federal projects on the North Platte River in eastern WY and western NE. Objective 3. A student of Hansen and Paige (WERA 1020 member) completed a study on the economic value (in environmental and recreational uses) of return flows from flood irrigation in the Upper Green River Basin of WY, which is of considerable interest to local landowners and Wyoming policymakers. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Objective 3. An extension bulletin on groundwater management in southeastern Wyoming is in development (publication anticipated for 2016). Objective 3. A popular press article and video on the non-agricultural benefits of flood irrigation is in development (publication anticipated for 2016). Objective 3. A scientific article on the non-agricultural benefits of flood irrigation is in development (submission to a peer-reviewed journal anticipated for 2016). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 2. Hansen will work on optimal reservoir management in southwestern Wyoming, which is a headwaters of the Colorado River Basin. Objective 3. Hansen will work begin an economic analysis on alternative groundwater management scenarios (funding for a graduate student obtained for this work).

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1. Peck and colleagues are creating an Agricultural Resource Management Plan for the Wind River Reservation, with the Tribal Water Engineer's Office and a local interdisciplinary working group. Objective 3. With a graduate student, Hansen completed a study of alternative policies to help irrigation districts store water in federal projects on the North Platte River in eastern WY and western NE. Objective 3. At the request of the Wyoming Governor's Office, Hansen serves on a Laramie County groundwater committee tasked with exploring ways to address groundwater overdraft in SE WY. Hansen has (with support from stakeholders) submitted a grant proposal to perform an economic analysis of alternative groundwater management strategies in SE WY. Objective 3. Hansen (Wyoming) , Schoengold (Nebraska), and Suter (Colorado) co-organized a conference with WERA1020 attended by academic researchers, water managers, and policymakers.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Hansen, K., R. Howitt, and J. Williams. 2015. An Econometric Test of Water Market Institutions. Natural Resources Journal 55(1): 127-152.
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Hansen, K. 2015. Water Markets from Theory to Practice. In Handbook of Water Economics, eds. A. Dinar and K. Schwabe. Edward Elgar Publishing, pp. 355-371.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Hansen, K., C. Nicholson and G. Paige. 2015. Wyomings Water: Resources and Management. UW Extension Bulletin B-1272. Laramie, WY: University of Wyoming Extension.