Printed Conference Proceedings

2002 - 2000 Proceedings

• Coastal Water Resources (New Orleans, 2002)
• Water Quantity and Quality Issues in Coastal Urban Areas (Miami, 2000)

Coastal Water Resources (New Orleans, 2002)

2002, 78 Papers, 6 Abstracts, 484 Pages, Soft Cover / ISBN # 1-882132-56-4 TPS 02-1 / $19.00 for Members / $24.00 for Non-Members / $8.00 S&H - $10.00 Foreign S&H

$8.00 S&H/ $10.00 Foreign S&HBack in the late 1960s, most water resources professionals were focused on the traditional aspects of hydrology, hydraulics, and ground water. They were worried about flood control, hydropower, irrigation, and water supply. Relatively few people were systematically considering water quality and how it relates to the environment. Below the head of the tide, another smaller group of engineers and scientists were working on coastal problems. They focused on wave mechanics, shoreline and harbor protection, beach-fills, and the behavior of tidal inlets. A few people were trying to model estuarine circulation in response to the budding national flood insurance program¹s need for better tools to predict hurricane surge elevations. Here, again, the emphasis was on the built environment, with little emphasis on the preservation of natural systems.

Fast forward to now and the whole world has changed. Knowledge in all technical fields has increased exponentially. Successful professionals are now more highly specialized in narrow disciplines. On the other hand, we have learned that natural systems are infinitely more complex and interesting than once was widely understood. Therefore, our trend towards fragmented knowledge works against the critical need for a broad, multi-disciplined approach to solving real problems. It was fortuitous that New Orleans was the site of AWRA¹s 2002 Spring Specialty Conference. Nearly 80 percent of the total U.S. wetland losses are occurring nearby. The underlying causes involve a complex combination of coastal and hydrologic factors, including loss of sediment supply, barrier island erosion, saltwater intrusion, and diminished freshwater inputs to the estuarial system. Most of the problems are man-made. Solving the challenges will require integrated approaches that go far beyond the tools available to either water resource or coastal professionals taken alone.

This published proceedings represents a good sampling of presentations made throughout the conference. Author contact information appears on the first page of each paper and will allow interested readers to follow-up directly with authors, thereby propagating the dissemination of information beyond the conference and this published volume. Papers are included on the following topics: • Coastal Resources Management; • Habitat Restoration; • Shoreline Erosion/Regional Sediment Management; • Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Environmental Investment Project (ENVEST); • Water Quality; • Hydraulic and Water Quality Modeling; • Coastal Ground Water; and several special Poster papers and abstracts.

2000, 91 Extended Abstracts, 19 Abstracts, 400 pages, soft cover / ISBN # 1-882132-52-1 TPS 00-3 / $38.00 for Members / $48.00 for Non-Members / $10.00 S&H/ $12.00 Foreign S&H

Coastal areas experience great challenges with their close association with water resources. Citiies encroach upon pristine, natural habitats that compete with agricultural areas to meet increased food demands and recreational venues. Watersheds are impacted, mitigation needs arise, policies are written, capital improvements are budgeted, studies are funded, and the future of available water and its quantity is decided. Coastal areas are threatened by tropical storms and hurricanes on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and by El Nino storms on the west coast, causing millions of dollars in damage from flooding, threatening lives and altering natural and artificial waterways. The fact that these events are annual occurrences has placed increased pressure on the need to protect and prepare, as well as to provide natural resources. Increased demands for food and water have expanded research, pilot programs and public and commercial enterprises in production techniques such as aquaculture and desalination.

The theme for this conference proceedings "Water Quantity and Quality Issues in Coastal Urban Areas" - is a very broad and diverse subject. These papers are informative and educational. The subject matter covered in the 91 extended abstracts is divided into the following sections: • Non-Point Source Pollution • Water Supply Planning; • Agricultural Hydrology; • International; • Wetland Policy; •Minimum Flows & Levels-Science or Policy; • Mgmt of Sediment Material in Coastal Areas; • Wetland Models; • Watershed Based Decision Making; • Ground Water Modeling; • Wetland Restoration; • Developing Water Policy; • Groundwater Quantity, Quality, & Protection; • Panama Canal Watershed; • Water Policy-Public and Private Stakeholders; • ASR & Injection Wells; • Hydrologic & Hydrodynamic Modeling in Florida; • Water Quality Monitoring; • Watershed Mgmt. & Planning in the New Millennium; • Water Resources Master Planning; • Hydrologic Modeling; • Tidal Issues; • Conflict Resolution in the Water Resources Planning Process; • Watershed Modeling; • GIS in Water Supply Planning; • Land Use Impacts; • Hydrologic Extremes & Changes; • Water Resources Mgmt. Using GIS-Based Technology; • Optimal Results With BMP; • Stormwater Mgmt.