Modeled Hydraulic and Salt Transport Patterns in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta

by Russ T. Brown, Jones & Stokes Associates, Sacramento, United States,
Paul Wisheropp, Jones & Stokes Associates, Sacramento, United States,
Don Smith, Jones & Stokes Associates, Sacramento, United States,
Richard Rachiele, Jones & Stokes Associates, Sacramento, United States,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Hydraulic Engineering

Abstract:

Modeled hydraulic and salt transport patterns in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta have been summarized as the basis for detailed environmental assessment of proposed water management projects in the Delta, demonstrating that hydraulic engineering is the foundation for water resource analysis. The Delta channel flows, simulated from the boundary flows and tides with the Resource Management Associates (RMA) Delta hydraulic model have been summarized with average tidal flows and net flow splits of the river inflows and export pumping flows. The RMA Delta salt transport model uses net channel flows to estimate salt concentration within the Delta, Salt transport results have been generalized for a given boundary flow sequence by tracking each inflow source separately using modeled dye tracers. Travel time is simulated for each source with a decaying dye tracer. Because electrical conductivity (EC) is monitored at several stations and periodic chloride (Cl) measurements indicate distinct Cl/EC ratios for the two major rivers and seawater, Ec and Cl modeled separately to allow calibration of the simulated salt transport and source tracking patterns for 1967-1991.

Subject Headings: Hydraulic models | Tides | Salt water | Water management | Transportation engineering | River flow | Water resources

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