Includes bibliographical references.

Unraveling the Effects of Long-Distance Water Transfer for Ecological Recharge -- Review of Utilization Management of Groundwater at Risk of Salinization -- Operational Seasonal Water Supply and Water Level Forecasting for the Laurentian Great Lakes -- Multiobjective Scheduling Method for Short-Term Peak Shaving Operation of Cascade Hydro Plants -- Balancing Ecological Requirements and Power Generation in Reservoir Operation in Fish Spawning Seasons -- Ecological Optimal Operation of Hydropower Stations to Maximize Total Phosphorus Export -- Regularization of an Inverse Problem for Parameter Estimation in Water Distribution Networks -- Resolving Conflicts between Irrigation Agriculture and Ecohydrology Using Many-Objective Robust Decision Making -- Case Study on Hydropolitics in Afghanistan and Pakistan: Energy and Water Impacts of Kunar River Development -- Pressure-Based Analysis of Water Main Failures in California -- Hourly and Daily Urban Water Demand Predictions Using a Long Short-Term Memory Based Model -- Need for Process Based Empirical Models for Water Quality Management: Salinity Management in the Delaware River Basin.

[Article Title: Unraveling the Effects of Long-Distance Water Transfer for Ecological Recharge / Wei Ding, Haixing Liu, Yu Li, Hua Shang, Chi Zhang and Guangtao Fu , p. 1-5]

Abstract: Forum papers are thought-provoking opinion pieces or essays founded in fact, sometimes containing speculation, on a civil engineering topic of general interest and relevance to the readership of the journal. The views expressed in this Forum article do not necessarily reflect the views of ASCE or the Editorial Board of the journal.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001272

[Article Title: Review of Utilization Management of Groundwater at Risk of Salinization / Maurizio Polemio, and Livia Emanuela Zuffianò, p. 1-20]

Abstract: Groundwater salinization caused by natural and anthropogenic processes can increase the salinity above the concentrations recommended for specific uses or environments. Approximately 16% of the total land area on Earth suffers from groundwater salinization, potentially creating significant social, economic, and environmental problems. Global bibliographical research focusing on studies related to the utilization and management of salinization-threatened groundwater was conducted. A database of 520 papers from 85 countries was compiled and discussed.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001278

[Article Title: Operational Seasonal Water Supply and Water Level Forecasting for the Laurentian Great Lakes / Lauren M. Fry, Deanna Apps, and Andrew D. Gronewold, p. 1-13]

Abstract: Seasonal water supply forecasts are a critical component of regional water resources management planning. Across the United States, multiple modeling tools and operational protocols have evolved over time to address this need. Here, the authors document, assess, and recommend improvements to the current operational water supply forecasting protocols employed in managing flows through, and water levels across, Earth’s largest lake system: the Laurentian Great Lakes.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001214

[Article Title: Multiobjective Scheduling Method for Short-Term Peak Shaving Operation of Cascade Hydro Plants / Lingan Zhou, Chuntian Cheng, Shengli Liao and Jian Wang, p. 1-15]

Abstract: With structural changes in power consumption, peak load demands and peak-valley differences are growing, which motivates peak shaving operations of hydropower systems. A multiobjective mixed-integer nonlinear programming model is presented for short-term hydropower generation scheduling that aims to regulate peak loads and enhance power efficiency. The combined feasible operation zones and the aggregate generation function of each plant are embedded in this model to deal with the operation constraints of units. A set of Pareto solutions of this model is generated by an improved normalized constraint method that narrows the optimization range to ensure the practicality and compact distribution of solutions, each of which represents an aggregated scheduling of cascaded hydropower plants.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001274

[Article Title: Balancing Ecological Requirements and Power Generation in Reservoir Operation in Fish Spawning Seasons / Fang-Fang Li, Cong-Min Liu, Zhi-Gang Wu, and Jun Qi, p. 1-10]

Abstract: Various studies have demonstrated that the long-term flow regime plays an important role in stimulating fish spawning. The flow regime is altered by the construction and operation of reservoirs. In this study, a flow-regime identification method is proposed, which extracts the rising hydrograph processes with a certain amplitude and duration through multiple passes of denoising and filtering algorithms to filter out random fluctuations with different amplitudes. The identified rising hydrograph processes were then quantitatively characterized using three parameters.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001277

[Article Title: Ecological Optimal Operation of Hydropower Stations to Maximize Total Phosphorus Export / Jiahui Deng, Yu Li, Bo Xu, Wei Ding, Huicheng Zhou, and Arthur Schmidt, p. 1-11]

Abstract: Cascade reservoirs have interrupted the distribution and transportation of nutrients, which brings environmental and ecological problems. However, the current ecological operation methods focusing on the hydrologic regime cannot solve these problems. This paper presents an ecological optimal operation method that aims at restoring the transport pattern of biogenic substances. First, this paper establishes an optimization model that combines multiobjective reservoir operations with a dynamic mass balance calculation of total phosphorus (TP), taking the maximum TP export as the ecological objective, and a traditional model taking hydrologic regime as the ecological objective for further comparison.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001275

[Article Title: Regularization of an Inverse Problem for Parameter Estimation in Water Distribution Networks / Alexander Waldron, Filippo Pecci, and Ivan Stoianov, p. 1-16]

Abstract: An accurate hydraulic model of a water distribution network (WDN) is a critical prerequisite for a multitude of operational, optimization, and planning tasks. The accuracy of a hydraulic model can only be maintained through its periodic calibration and validation with acquired pressure and flow data from a WDN. It is important that this process be robust and computationally efficient. This paper describes the regularization of an inverse problem to deal with data uncertainties and ill-posedness of parameter estimation problems in WDNs. A novel data-driven strategy is presented for tuning the regularization hyperparameter for the inverse problem and also for validating the results on an independent set of operational hydraulic data.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001273

[Article Title: Resolving Conflicts between Irrigation Agriculture and Ecohydrology Using Many-Objective Robust Decision Making / Yu Li and Wolfgang Kinzelbach, p. 1-13]

Abstract: In arid regions, sustainable groundwater management is crucial for the protection of vulnerable local ecosystems but often leads to conflict with the interests of economic development. Management models containing simulation-optimization techniques are widely used to explore sustainable strategies of conjunctive water use, but previous studies often failed to address the system’s complexity as a whole, characterized by many stakeholders, a heterogeneous flow regime, and uncertain driving forces. This article contributes to a many-objective robust decision-making (MORDM) framework that integrates a state-of-the-art multiobjective optimization algorithm (MOEA) with robustness-based decision analysis to advance the field’s knowledge of conjunctive water use.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001261

[Article Title: Case Study on Hydropolitics in Afghanistan and Pakistan: Energy and Water Impacts of Kunar River Development / Hassaan F. Khan, Y. C. Ethan Yang, and Sungwook Wi, p. 1-13]

Abstract: There is growing interest from Afghanistan in using the untapped hydroelectric potential of the Kabul River Basin, on which both Pakistan and Afghanistan are simultaneously upstream and downstream riparians, to meet the energy demands of the country. This study evaluated the hydropower production potential and transboundary flow impacts of water infrastructure development on a major tributary of the Kabul, the Kunar River, under different climate and water management policy scenarios. An existing process-based distributed hydrologic model for the study region was coupled with an optimization-based reservoir operation and routing model developed for this study.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001262

[Article Title: Pressure-Based Analysis of Water Main Failures in California / Diego Martínez García, Juneseok Lee, Jonathan Keck, Jan Kooy, Paul Yang, and Bryan Wilfley, p. 1-8]

Abstract: Frequent, extended, and high fluctuations of internal water pressure are suspected to be causally linked to water main failures. However, there is little solid quantitative evidence to support this for real water systems. This paper examines the influence, extent, and impacts of hydraulic pressure magnitude(s) on the physical integrity of water mains in five selected districts in California. The principal objectives of this study were to: (1) characterize spatial and temporal patterns of relatively high water main failure rates, and (2) statistically test for direct correlative linkages between observed high local pressure regimes and pipe failures.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001255

[Article Title: Hourly and Daily Urban Water Demand Predictions Using a Long Short-Term Memory Based Model / Li Mu, Feifei Zheng, Ruoling Tao, Qingzhou Zhang, and Zoran Kapelan, p. 1-11]

Abstract: This case study uses a long short-term memory (LSTM)–based model to predict short-term urban water demands for the Hefei City of China. The performance of the LSTM-based model is compared with the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model, the support vector regression (SVR) model, and the random forests (RF) model based on data with time resolutions ranging from 15  min to 24  h. Additionally, this paper investigates the performance of the LSTM-based model in predicting multiple successive data points.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001276

[Article Title: Need for Process Based Empirical Models for Water Quality Management: Salinity Management in the Delaware River Basin / Eliot S. Meyer, Daniel P. Sheer, Paul V. Rush, Richard M. Vogel, and Hannah E. Billian, p. 1-13]

Abstract: Managing salinity in the Upper Delaware Estuary is an important operational goal within the Delaware River Basin (DRB). High salinity concentrations can create water quality and operational challenges which increase treatment costs for downstream water utilities and cause ecological damage. This study reviews the advantages and limitations of process based empirical models (PBEM) as an alternative to complex hydrodynamic models or statistical models (i.e., multivariate regression) for salinity management. PBEMs involve choosing a parsimonious form of equation(s) that logically reproduces important physical relationships.

https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0001260