The Red River Basin is a vital source of water in the South Central U.S., supporting ecosystems, drinking water, agriculture, tourism and recreation, and cultural ceremonies. Stretching from the High Plains of New Mexico eastward to the Mississippi River, the Red River Basin encompasses parts of five states – New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Further, 74% of the jurisdictional boundaries of the Chickasaw and Choctaw Tribes are located within the basin.
Water resources in the basin have been stressed in recent years due to a multi-year drought and increasing demands for consumptive use by metropolitan areas in Oklahoma and Texas. Unfortunately, currently available projections of future precipitation across the region show a high degree of uncertainty, making it difficult for water managers to plan for the future.
The goal of this project is to provide resource managers with critical information on the impacts of climate change on flow in the Red River Basin. Researchers (1) used global climate models to make climate projections for the basin, and (2) developed models to determine the impacts of projected future climate conditions on stream flow. The modeling results can be used to evaluate future water supplies for water providers and flows for the environment.
The Red River Basin lies within the boundaries of three Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs), and the results of this project will help the LCCs and other managers reduce the impacts of floods and droughts and make decisions regarding the potential need for additional reservoirs or diversions of water into the Red River Basin. The tools developed for this study can also be used to evaluate the impacts of different flow conditions on aquatic life or water quality in the basin.
