Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

Minutes of W2190 meeting October 12-14, 2011 El Paso, TX Participants Brozovic, Nick (nbroz@illinois.edu) - University of Illinois (Chair); Cardon, Grant (grant.cardon@usu.edu) - Utah State University; Dinar, Ariel (adinar@ucr.edu) - University of California Riverside; Eiswerth, Mark (Mark.Eiswerth@unco.edu) - University of North Colorado; Ganjegunte, Girisha (gkganjegunte@ag.tamu.edu) - Texas AgriLife Research Center at El Paso; Golden, Bill (bgolden@agecon.ksu.edu) - Kansas State University; Hansen, Kristi (kristi.hansen@uwyo.edu) - University of Wyoming (Secretary); Hearne, Bob (robert.hearne@ndsu.edu)  North Dakota State University; Huffaker, Ray (rhuffaker@ufl.edu - Florida State University; Hunt, Fen (fhunt@nifa.usda.gov)  NIFA; Hurd, Brian (bhhurd@nmsu.edu) - New Mexico State University; Johnson, Jeff (jeff.johnson@ttu.edu) - Lubbock TAMU and TTech; MacDonagh-Dumler, John (macdon47@msu.edu) - Michigan State University; Michelson, Ari (amichelsen@ag.tamu.edu) - Texas AgriLife Research Center at El Paso; Peck, Dannele (dpeck@uwyo.edu) - University of Wyoming (Vice-Chair); Peterson, Jeff (jpeters@ksu.edu) - Kansas State University; Schoengold, Karina (kschoengold2@unlnotes.unl.edu) - University of Nebraska; Taylor, Garth (gtaylor@uidaho.edu) - University of Idaho; Ward, Frank (fward@nmsu.edu) - New Mexico State University; Annual Meeting Minutes This is the third annual meeting of W2190, held on October 12-14, 2011, in El Paso, TX. Officers for the past year: Chair - Nick Brozovi, Illinois; Vice-Chair  Dannele Peck, Wyoming; Secretary  Kristi Hansen, Wyoming. October 13, 2011, Morning Session 1. Welcome by Ari Michelson (Texas): Introduction to region and AgriLife. 2. Introductions of meeting participants 3. Meeting Agenda and Goals (Nick Brozovic, Illinois): We are funded by USDA with the goal of funding multi-state, multi-disciplinary research around the region. This is year 2 of 2190. Goal: to provide tech support, policy analysis, on water policy issues in the West. 4. 2011 meeting minutes are approved. 5. Ari Michelson (Texas) presented an overview of water issues (water resource supplies, demands, management, and current research) in the Paso del Norte Region and Rio Grande Basin. Water resource issues in the region are heavily influenced by interstate and international boundary disputes, two treaties on the Rio Grande, and the importance of salinity as a pressing management issue. The regions recent history has been characterized by drought punctuated by flood events. 6. Girisha Ganjegunte (TX AgriLife Research) gave a presentation entitled, Salinity Measurement and Management by EMI and Polymer Treatment. This presentation provided a springboard for discussion of W-2190 Objective 1: Develop farm-level irrigation strategies to address water quantity and quality problems. Girisha uses electronic induction to measure salinity at the field-level. He is amassing a series of data collection points that will allow him to extrapolate salinity conditions in the basin. This EMI method measures soil clay content, type of salt, sodicity, salt concentration, water concentration, for only a small fraction (10%) of the cost of other methods. Results can be used by extension researchers to show pecan growers in the Rio Grande Basin, who are very concerned about salinity management, the implications of different management strategies. Experimental findings thus far indicate that permeability and sodicity are improved with polymers, over control and gypsum treatments. W2190 members noted the potential for good collaboration with economists, as such data measured repeatedly over time could be used in an economic optimization model to see how salinity changes over time in response to policy. 7. Brian Hurd (New Mexico) gave a presentation on a research project to improve management of upland watersheds in mountain communities of New Mexico. This presentation provided a springboard for discussion of W-2190 Objective 2: Examine regional water-related impacts associated with energy, environmental policy, and climate change. Funding comes from the New Mexico Agricultural Experimental Station and the National Science Foundation. This is an interdisciplinary, international collaboration with a focus on indigenous mountain communities in New Mexico whose use of water is characterized by pastoral upland watersheds and small-scale irrigation. The purpose of the project is to construct a model of water that is holistic in scope, including not just supply of the physical water resource but also the cultural, economic, and physical capital of the managing indigenous communities. For example, water brokers arrive in these mountain communities looking for water for cities. Under a holistic approach of water resource management, is lining canals and selling the resulting conserved water a good idea? The project seeks to determine how the capacity of these mountain communities can be enhanced to address stressors (e.g., downstream urban water users, climate change) that affect them? Policy guidance is the anticipated outcome, with international applications (e.g., Chile). 8. Ari Michelson (TX AgriLife Research) gave a presentation (joint work with Ron Lacewell and Zhuping Sheng, TAMU; and Tom McGuckin, NMSU) entitled, Assessment of Economic Impacts of Salinity in the Rio Grande Project Area. This presentation provided a springboard for discussion of W-2190 Objective 3: Investigate Alternative Water Policy and Management Institutions. When the Rio Grande Salinity Coalition was established in 2008, the prevailing feeling was that agricultural was the major source of salts entering the river. In reality, there were geological reasons for the increase. The projects goals are to reduce loading, minimize impacts, and find ways to improve supplies. Preliminary assessment thus far is an analysis of the economic damages from salinity. The analysis takes into account agricultural production patterns, current urban conditions, average concentration of salinity in RG river water, and an economic salinity damage function. The analysis indicates where in the basin salinity reductions would result in the largest system-wide decreases in economic losses and explores possible treatment methods. 9. Nick Brozovic (Illinois) reviewed the W-2190 2011 reporting requirements. Two types of reporting are required: 1. Each state must submit publications, accomplishments, and impact statements (these are important) through the committee. Space limitations exist for these state reports. 2. Some states have additional reporting requirements to their Agricultural Experiment Station. 10. Fen Hunt (NIFA Liaison to W-2190) explained USDA expectations for the W-2190 committee. Dr. Hunt stated that W-2190 is one of the more active committees but that we should consider developing a joint proposal that matches group objectives, perhaps under the AFRI priorities of food security, climate variability and change, and sustainable bioenergy. Dr. Hunt also noted that FY2012 requests for applications are open right now, and that several of the foundational (discipline-based) grant programs (environment and markets and trade) did not receive many applications last year. Dr Hunt emphasized the importance of demonstrating impact. AFRI/NIFA is moving in the direction of larger, longer-term grants, to increase impact. International collaborations are encouraged but must justify how international involvement will improve US agricultural food security and environment. 11. BUSINESS MEETING during lunch. Karina Schoengold (Nebraska) was elected to be the W-2190 secretary for 2011-12, with the understanding that the primary responsibility for writing the proposal for the successor to W-2190 will fall to an executive committee established for that purpose rather than the committee officers who are in office in the year leading up to the submission. (The executive committee will be comprised largely or entirely of seasoned W-2190 members who were involved in writing proposals for W-1190 and W-2190.) Next years W-2190 meeting will be hosted by Ariel Dinar at UC Riverside. [Note, December 1, 2011: Two sets of dates were put to the membership for consideration via e-mail after the El Paso meeting: October 11-12 and October 18-19. It was decided by Doodle poll that the meeting would be held on October 18-19.] The committees 2013 meeting will likely be held in Jackson, Wyoming. There was much discussion about ways to expand the 2013 meeting to include specific workshop topics that might draw in a larger group of water resource researchers. The workshop could encompass multiple topics (e.g., policy debates in the morning and modeling approaches in the afternoon). Such a workshop could result in a special journal issue. A USDA conference grant (mentioned earlier in the meeting by Fen Hunt) could potentially provide supplemental funding for an expanded committee meeting. (The possibility of applying for a conference grant to fund a mini-workshop at UCOWR was also discussed.) Nothing regarding special plans for the 2013 meeting was decided, though Dannele Peck (incoming Chair from Wyoming) will follow up by e-mail, to delegate somebody to look into conference grant proposal requirements. Other outstanding questions: Should urban water use also be considered, or would this workshop cover urban and other uses as well? What would be the geographic scope of the workshop? (John MacDonagh-Dumler (Michigan) suggested that the Chicago diversion of Great Lakes water to the Mississippi River system has the full gamut of water issues.) Could a USDA conference grant be used to fund a workshop that covered more water uses than just agriculture? The state reporting pdf template created by Nick Brozovic (including changes implemented this year for the first time) works very well. Nobody suggested additional changes for next year. All agreed that the current meeting format works very well. Having a presentation on each of the three W-2190 objectives helps to focus discussion. There was enthusiasm for bringing in local, outside (non-academic) presenters to shed light on local water issues. October 13, 2011 Afternoon Session 1. State reports (see below). 2. Field Tour: Rio Grande canalization, levees, cotton production, American diversion dam, border fence, groundwater pumping, reclaimed water use, soil salinization, river gauging/telemetry and database system, drainage ditches and water quality, urbanization of agricultural lands, pecan orchards, Paso del Norte, scenic drive overlook. October 14, 2011 Morning Session 1. State Reports (see below). 2. Meeting/Agenda Logistics for Next Year This years meeting agenda called for breakout sessions to allow committee members to meet in smaller groups for more in-depth discussion on individual W-2190 objectives. However, the group determined that the state reports fostered such good cross-fertilization of ideas between objectives that in-depth discussion of state reports within the larger group was a more productive use of time than breakout sessions. It was suggested that next year, breakout sessions be removed from the agenda but that state reporting should take place by objective. 3. Announcements a. Ariel Dinar (California) announced that UC Riverside will host the 3rd International Salinity Forum Conference in 2013 jointly with the US Salinity Lab. b. Ariel Dinar (California) announced the call for papers for the 10th IWREC (International Association of Water Economists), to be held in August 2012, Stockholm, at the same time as World Water Week (August 26-31, 2012). c. Ari Michelsen (Texas) announced the American Water Resources Association meeting in Albuquerque, NM in early November 2011. d. Brian Hurd (New Mexico) would like to organize a session at UCOWR for July 1-19, 2011 in Sante Fe, New Mexico. The deadline for submitting papers and sessions is December 5, 2011. Submissions of entire sessions (four papers) are encouraged. State Reports State reports (brief summaries of water issues and research activities in each state) took place during the last two sessions, as time permitted. Reports are listed here in alphabetical order by state. California (Ariel Dinar). Arial is currently doing background work for a big, upcoming climate change study looking specifically at water resources and agriculture in California, Arizona, and Texas. George Frisvold (W-2190 member from Arizona) is also involved. Ariel has several recent publications on this topic as well. Competition for surface water sources in California is increasing. Ariels work on this topic is expanding to include experimental economics methods and a survey of experiences of other aquifers in other, similar regions (e.g., La Mancha Aquifer in Spain). Colorado (Mark Eiswerth). Mark shared a survey (Colorado College Colorado River Basin Survey) on Colorado River management that has been a great tool for stimulating discussion in his courses (http://www2.coloradocollege.edu/stateoftherockies/). Mark has been involved in a survey measuring awareness of invasive aquatic species. He is also particularly interested these days in the links between water and bioenergy. Florida (Ray Huffaker). Ray referred us to his state report for details on current activities. Next year, Ray plans to familiarize himself with climate modeling. Idaho (Garth Taylor). Garth has developed a demand calculator with Idaho colleagues. The calculator utilizes short-run demand functions for irrigation water, and can be used for applied AND consumptive use. It is based on production functions from Martin and Supalla (Nebraska committee members) and from Rick Allen (UNL) and indicates elasticity with respect to ET and crop price. One interesting result of the demand calculator is that producers generally face more risk under crop price than under ET. However, the calculator does not handle crop mix very realistically. Garth is also looking at externalities in hydrology. Illinois (Nick Brozovic). Nick is currently looking at nutrient trading markets for water quality. The specific context of his current work is a feasibility analysis of trading between rural wastewater treatment ponds and farmers, through the construction of inexpensive instream wetlands. Nick is also working with Cameron Speir on surface water-groundwater interactions in Klamath Basin: what policies might control groundwater externalities to increase instream flows and salmon habitat. One non-intuitive finding so far is that in some habitats, regulating water users who are farther away from the waterway has greater benefits than regulating water users who are closer. For example, if you are concerned about water quality in October, regulate away from the stream in July and August rather than regulating by the river in October. Nick also has an NSF project on the Republican River Basin. This is a multi-disciplinary project with engineers, sociologists, and others. The next step in the project is to establish a groundwater trading market in a particular watershed, applying lessons learned thus far from the project. Kansas (Jeff Peterson and Bill Golden). Golden explained that a policy initiative of the Kansas governor is to do something about depletion of the Ogallala aquifer. The previous mandate was to minimize withdrawals. The new mandate is to reduce water use AND grow the agricultural sector. Restructuring water rights might present an answer to this challenge, but Kansas lacks the political will for such a solution. WARAT is an irrigation management tool that looks at crop mixes and risk and develops production functions that producers can change. Petersons current research is focused on impact of and adaptation to climate change; and the use of PMP in hydrologic modeling. Michigan (John MacDonagh-Dumler). Researchers in Michigan continue development of an on-line water withdrawal assessment tool. Groundwater users can use this tool to determine whether a new well at a specific location will have the expected yield without having an adverse impact on streamflow. This tool was designed to facilitate implementation of the interstate compact among eight states to manage the Great Lakes. Another decision support tool is HIT (high-impact targeting tool). This geospatial tool has been used to assess the areas at highest risk for sediment, erosion, and nutrient runoff. One problem with the tool is that confidentiality restrictions prevent the researchers from broadcasting findings broadly. One solution to this conundrum may be to give the tool to NRCS. Nebraska (Karina Schoengold). Nebraska committee members are working on expansion of the Water Optimizer irrigation decision support tool. In particular, they are adding intra-seasonal water use planning to the tool. Karina is currently working on risk management, specifically input price risk for water, and how this affects irrigation technology adoption. Thus far, results indicate that when prices are riskier, there is more adoption of conservation irrigation, though the effect is small. Karina is also working on issues related to weather and climate risk, and how farms use government risk management programs to mitigate this risk. Karina is also working with Nick (Illinois) on a Republican River groundwater trading pilot study. New Mexico (Frank Ward and Brian Hurd). Frank is currently focused on models designed to incorporate various externalities into basin modeling. He is also looking at the structure of trans-boundary agreements, and the effects of structuring them based on diversion rights or delivery requirements. Brian is looking at system dynamics models within a community-based modeling framework (see Brians presentation above). Such system dynamics models can handle nonlinearities and complexities perhaps better than more conventional mathematical programming. This framework is a useful tool for consensus-building and management. A good discussion ensued on the pros and cons of system dynamics models versus mathematical programming models; and simulation versus optimization. North Dakota (Bob Hearne). There has been a lot of flooding this year in North Dakota. Bob published a book chapter on Devils Lake and is currently focused on Missouri River water management. Texas (Ari Michelsen). Texas committee members have generated nine journal publications and more than 15 presentations this past year. Their research continues on a number of topics, including using EMI for spatial distribution of salinity analysis, greenhouse production, salt-tolerant sorghum and switch grass cultivars, bioenergy, analyzing soil erosion and nutrients, seawater desalination for municipal water production, and the appropriateness of various discounting rates for natural resources. Ari recently published a survey article on water modeling in the Journal of Natural Resource Modeling. Ari also discussed the fact that many state water plans (including that of Texas) do not distinguish well between quantity demanded versus demand. Utah (Grant Cardon). Grant is looking at salinity at the field- and regional-scales, in the Cache Valley (Bear River Basin) and the Uinta (upper Colorado area). Specifically, he is looking for patterns and sources and how scarcity and salinity affect productivity, with the idea of developing some predictive ability. Wyoming (Kristi Hansen and Dannele Peck). Dannele won an international award for a recent article examining farm-level response to drought and climate change. Kristi has been using PMP to capture the value of storage in a hydro-economic model of the northern California water system. She has also begun work on scoping the potential for an ecosystem services market project in the Green River Basin of southwestern Wyoming, which is part of the headwaters of the Colorado River System. Several ecosystem services under consideration relate to water quality, quantity, and timing issues. Kristi and Dannele are both part of a Wyoming inter-disciplinary team to examine the resilience and adaptability of Wyoming producers to climate change and drought; and a project examining management strategies for coalbed methane produced water in the Wyoming Powder River Basin.

W2190 Objective 1. Develop farm-level irrigation strategies to address water quantity and quality problems. In Kansas, the Water Allocation Risk Analysis Tool (WARAT) project (funded by RMA) was completed and a web-based tool was released to the public. In Nebraska, the AquaCrop model developed by the FAO was used to analyze intra-seasonal water management for deficit irrigation. A sensitivity analysis identified the most significant parameters for the model. The model was calibrated to results for irrigated and rainfed corn for five years of data from eastern Nebraska. As expected a complex model produces non-unique results for a range of physical and empirical coefficients. Committee members in Nebraska also completed the optimization routines for the suite of models included in the Water Optimizer program. Now, options are now available to optimize limited irrigation water supplies for a single field for a single year, a single field for multiple years, multiple fields for a single year and multiple fields for multiple years. Each of the options represents a form of water allocation that producers face in Nebraska and the surrounding states where pooling of water over multiple fields and/or years may or may not be allowed. In New Mexico and Arizona, regional assessment of water use and carbon management policies continues to incorporate farm and ranch behavior in evaluating the economic impacts of proposed legislation. Also in New Mexico, a survey of acequia members has been conducted on perceptions and issues related to water use, community challenges, and adaptation to stresses from population and climate change. In Texas, research continued on determining the spatial distribution of salinity in the study area using Electromagnetic Induction (EMI) technique. Additional fields were included in the assessment of spatial distribution of salinity by the EMI technique. This research is being carried out in collaboration with NMSU, Utah State University, and local growers. Also in Texas, greenhouse experiments evaluated bioenergy crop performance under elevated salinity conditions and the use of wastewater irrigation for sorghum and switchgrass cultivars. Data to date have indicated that the EMI method can provide accurate field scale soil salinity data at a high spatial resolution in less time than the conventional methods. In Utah, Cardon prepared a set of Spanish-language irrigation fact sheets for horticultural crops common to the western US (cherry, peach, apple and strawberry). Cardon also completed a set of salinity distribution maps for irrigated soils in Utah's Bear River Basin using rapid electromagnetic remote sensing methods to asses/track irrigation-induced saline conditions. Cardon also completed study on ultra low dilution chemistry useful in removing biases due to ion-pairing on the estimation of soil salinity from saturated paste and EMI electrical conductivity measurements. In Wyoming, Peck was the recipient of the award for Best AJARE Article at the Australian Agricultural & Resource Economics Society (2010) for [Peck and Adams, Farm-level impacts of prolonged drought" Aust. J. Ag. Res. Econ. 54:43-60]. Peck also sought and received suggestions from Ward (New Mexico) on improving a draft manuscript on the use of continuous versus discrete variables to model deficit irrigation. Objective 2: Examine regional water-related impacts associated with energy, environmental policy, and climate change. In California, Dinar developed close interactions with water agencies in Southern California in addressing environmental policy and climate change impacts on water management. In Colorado, committee members conducted experiments to examine the potential long-term success of different climate change policies, and observed that success of these policies depends, more than expected, on the perceived probability of negative effects from climate change. Colorado committee members also estimated potential visitation and resulting economic impact associated with kayaking and a proposed whitewater rafting park on the Poudre River in Colorado. Estimates were used to convince the City of Fort Collins there would be enough visitation to move the project planning into the site design phase. Committee members also completed dynamic-stochastic Mussel Management Decision Support tool for the Colorado-Big Thompson System: http://dare.colostate.edu/tools/cbtmussels.aspx Colorado committee members also delivered a final study to public environmental managers in the area of water resource and lakes management in an urban area. This effort fostered links to external stakeholders and clientele. In Florida, Huffaker completed study of reservoir dynamics associated with a newly-emerging environmentally-friendly sedimentation control technology--"hydrosuction dredging". In Florida, Huffaker wrote software in R that detects patterns in time-sequenced ecosystem (including hydrologic) data. Detected patterns provide a valuable guide to modeling ecological and hydrologic systems. In Idaho, Taylor (with colleagues) gave a presentation to USDI - BOR Science and Technology entitled, Hydrologic Externalities and Western Water Management (December 2011). In Idaho, Taylor (with a colleague) gave a three-day workshop for Bureau of Reclamation project managers entitled, Water Economics Workshop, in Boise, ID (September 2010). In Illinois and California, Brozovic, Speir (NMFS and W2190), and a student analyzed streamflow and habitat impacts of seasonal agricultural groundwater pumping in California. In Kansas, Peterson assessed the impacts of curtailing water rights in the Wet Walnut Creek Intensive Groundwater Use Control area (IGUCA) in central Kansas with ex-ante and ex-post case study techniques. In Kansas, Peterson also recoded a mathematical programming model of irrigation water use to interface with a model coupling tool called OpenMI, allowing linked simulation of economic, hydrologic, and other models. In Michigan, a water recharge calculator and map system built for The Nature Conservancy to protect and improve water quality and quantity will be expanded and utilized in the southeastern portion of the state. In Nebraska, Supalla and Martin worked with the USDA-RMA, with assistance from colleagues at Kansas State University, Colorado State University and Oregon State University, to develop a process that will provide deficit irrigation insurance. Administrative policies often prevent producers from insuring crops that receive less than a full water supply, which often results in suboptimal allocation of limited water supplies for producers. We adapted procedures in Water Optimizer to develop a method to adjust producers historical yields without water shortage to a new yield goal for insurance. We hope to work with the USDA-RMA for a pilot test of the procedure in either 2012 or 2013. New Mexico committee members have used an integrated basin scale analysis to examine economic costs and benefits of water right purchases for recharging and sustaining regional aquifers in the Rio Grande Basin. In Wyoming, Hansen and Peck have begun to explore the extent of damage to agricultural lands from coalbed natural gas by-product water in the Powder River Basin in preparation for evaluating alternative management strategies. At ERS, Schaible was the ERS representative on three Federal Inter-Agency water workgroups: (1) USGS Water Census Advisory Committee; (2) USDA Water Team; (3) USDA/World Bank Water Productivity workgroup. At ERS, Schaible developed national Water Census priorities and implementation plans (Water Census, 2011) and the first-ever USDA-REE Action Plan (2011) for meeting goals on water availability and quality. At ERS, Schaible, Kim, and Aillery presented a new water-management model and the policy motivation for improving irrigation efficiency for a sustainable irrigated agriculture sector. An ERS effort (EIB 2011) identifies challenges for agricultural water conservation, opportunities for improving irrigation efficiency, and the merits of broadening the scope of current water conservation policy. Objective 3: Investigate Alternative Water Policy and Management Institutions. In California, Dinar conducted presentations of project outputs in stakeholder meetings and public at large events. In Colorado, Goemans and Kroll conducted experiments to examine what affects public acceptability of alternative policy and management institutions. Findings suggest that incentive-based policies traditionally endorsed by economists are, independent of efficiency considerations, less supported than expected. In Colorado, development of a Water Resources Research Team to promote research and outreach linkages with experts at other universities in Colorado and the West continues. In Colorado, Goemans (in his role as a member of the Colorado Water Conservation Board HB1051 Advisory Group) developed utility data reporting requirements for the state of Colorado (developed reported tool outlining specific data utilities must report each year). Requirements were developed using similar efforts in Colorado and Texas as guidelines. In his capacity as CWCB Technical Advisory Group member, Goemans also completed survey of major Colorado water utilities identifying current data collection efforts and priority conservation planning information needs. The new Principles and Guidelines is requiring federal agencies to conduct Cost Benefit Analysis on a watershed scope and account for ecosystem services. The spatial partial equilibrium model constructed by Taylor and colleagues provides the Bureau of Reclamation project managers with an integrated hydrologic economic planning tool that is watershed in scope and incorporates hydrologic externalites. Taylor and colleagues have provided planners with advanced methods to evaluate recreation site demand and estimated the value of recreation for some of Idahos major recreational opportunities. In Idaho, Taylor applied for and/or was awarded five grants: $150,000 Climate Change and Water Management. R. G. Taylor, R. D. Schmidt, J. Tracy. US Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation. Pending; $100,000 Economics of Off Highway Vehicles. Garth Taylor Levan Elbakidze and Phil Watson. Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation. Pending; $4,000. Water Economic Workshop. Phil Watson and Garth Taylor 2010; $7,500 Analysis of Green Technology in North Idaho. Michelle Vachcon, Phil Watson, Garth Taylor. EDA Community Development Block Grant 2010-2011; $83,000 Boise Valley Hydro/economic model. Johnson, R. G. Taylor, R. D. Schmidt, J. Tracy. US Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation. 2009-2012. In Illinois, Brozovic and collaborators in agricultural economics, civil engineering, & sociology modeled the economic and environmental consequences of groundwater management policies in Nebraska. In Illinois, Brozovic, Ando (UIUC), a student, and collaborators at an NGO analyzed the potential for an agricultural nutrient trading market for water quality in Illinois. In Kansas, economic water modeling efforts for the Ogallala aquifer region were reviewed and published in "Groundwater Policy Research: Collaboration with Groundwater Conservation Districts in Texas." In Kansas, Peterson estimated the impact of transaction costs in for payment-for-environmental-service (PES) contracts from discrete choice experiment data on water quality trading in Kansas. In Michigan, results from efforts to refine water needs and availability for municipal and agricultural uses from a spatial-temporal perspective are being used in predicting possible new irrigation wells through the model Water Withdrawal Assessment Tool (WWAT). In New Mexico, an integrated basin analysis has been conducted for irrigation water conservation subsidies for the several international basins. Findings inform the design of irrigation water conservation policies. In North Dakota, Hearne collaborated with Canadian researchers to assess the use and lack of use of transboundary water management mechanisms such as the International joint commission under the boundary waters' treaty. In Texas, water demands for a dedicated biomass feedstock for energy for the Coastal region of Texas were estimated to require 50,000 af of irrigation water annually. The cost of production, harvesting, hauling and storage averages about $134/ton at the conversion facility for the base case. Also in Texas, a review of the perspectives of resource economists related to appropriateness of discounting natural resources is being conducted. In Wyoming, Peck arranged for Goemans and Kroll (Colorado W-2190 members) to present "The Impact of Leasing on Water Rights Markets" at the University of Wyoming agricultural and applied economics departmental seminar. In Wyoming, Hansen and colleagues have begun work to scope the potential for a payment for ecosystem services project in the Green River Basin. The goal of this project is to preserve wildlife/riparian habitat and downstream water quality/quantity as cost-effectively as possible while providing rancher-landowners with an additional stream of revenue. Hansen also contributed to the development of a hydro-economic modeling platform called HydroPlatform, a database management software tool intended to streamline inter-disciplinary basin-level modeling efforts.

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