Salinas Valley Integrated Hydrologic and Reservoir Operations Model, Monterey and San Luis Obispo Counties, California

The Salinas Valley Groundwater Basin in Monterey and San Luis Obispo Counties of California is a highly productive agricultural area, contributes significantly to the local economy, and provides a substantial portion of vegetables and other agricultural commodities to the Nation. Increases in agricultural development and population have put increasing demand on both surface water and groundwater resources in the valley. The added demand coupled with more extremes in climate variability has resulted in water management challenges in the Salinas Valley. These challenges are predominantly related to distribution of water supply throughout the basin, that is where and when the water is needed. To evaluate the water management issues in the Salinas Valley, the U.S. Geological Survey, Monterey County Water Resource Agency, and the Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency have developed a suite of models (geologic framework, watershed, historical, and operational models) that represent the Salinas Valley integrated hydrologic system. This data release includes both the integrated hydrologic model (referred to as the historical model) and a reservoir operations model (referred to as the operational model). The historical model uses historical climate, land use, stream flow diversions, and reservoir releases to simulate agricultural processes along with municipal and industrial water demands and reclaimed wastewater. The operational model adds an embedded reservoir operations framework to the simulation of historical conditions. The operational model uses specified operational rules to simulate reservoir releases and changes in reservoir storage. The operational model uses current reservoir operations and constant land use as opposed to the specified reservoir releases and changing land use types used in the historical model. The operational model is a hypothetical baseline model that can be used by local water managers to evaluate and quantify potential benefits of water supply projects. Together the suite of models, including the historical and operational model archived here, form a toolbox that can be used to simulate irrigated agriculture and associated reservoir operations of the integrated hydrologic system of the Salinas Valley.