PROJECT SCOPE OF WORK

Los Pinos & Tierra Blanca

Objective

Create hydrologic models for Los Pinos and Tierra Blanca watersheds to estimate the extent of potential flooding due to a variety of precipitation events.

Description

Our project focuses on two watersheds: Los Pinos and Tierra Blanca. Tierra Blanca is located roughly 40 miles southeast of Zacatecas, while Los Pinos is located about 30 miles east of Tierra Blanca. It seems that both of these areas have experienced flooding in the past due to various conditions. Discovering what events will cause this flooding, as well as making recommendations for flood control are the overall objectives of this study. Individual watershed descriptions and pertinent questions follow:

Los Pinos

Los Pinos is an endorheic watershed with a populated area in the center. During larger rainfall events, elevated water levels cause flooding of the population. In addition, it is believed that a raised highway creates a damming affect on the town. We will estimate the level of inundation due to various rainfall events using a hydrologic model.

Questions that our study should answer:

· What events will cause town to flood?

· How does the highway effect inundation

· What events would cause highway overtopping?

· Is there a need for the construction of a culvert or bridge on the highway?

Tierra Blanca

Tierra Blanca is a watershed that also contains a town and a highway. The highway’s road fill directs overland flow away from the community. There is a culvert in the highway which has experienced some blockage, which complicates the situation. We will estimate the level of inundation due to various rainfall events using a hydrologic model.

Questions that our study should answer:

· What events will cause town to flood?

· How does the highway effect inundation?

· How does this culvert interact with inundation?

· What events would cause highway overtopping?

· Is there a need for the rehabilitation or full replacement of the culvert?

Project Tasks

· Obtain all relevant data from Team Aguilas in Mexico

· Load data into WMS for both watersheds to create Hydrologic Models

· Load Precipitation Data to Create IDF Curves

· Define highway involvement during precipitation events

· Understand current drainage routing in precipitation events

· Determine effectiveness of blocked culvert in Tierra Blanca

· Analysis of results and Team Aguilas discussion to formulate best solutions

Project Schedule

Timeline	Feb. 9-15	Feb. 16-22	Feb. 23-Mar. 1	Mar. 2-8	Mar. 9-15	Mar. 16-22	Mar. 23-30	Mar. 30-Apr. 4
Data Collection
Digital Elevation Model
Soil Coverages
Land Use
Annual Precipitation
Road maps/Highway Designs (Both Sites)
Culvert Design (Tierra Blanca)
Watershed
Import Watershed Data
Delineate Watershed
Hydrologic Modeling
Compute Curve Number
Creation of Hydrographs/IDF Curves
Creation of Flow Vectors
Model 50 year Precipitation Event
Discuss Computer Outputs
Presentation
Prepare Conclusions
Propose Solutions
Presentation

Deliverables

1. Flood delineation maps for both Los Pinos and Tierra Blanca watersheds.

2. Water surface elevation vs. Return period charts

3. Estimate of inundation resulting from highway failure at Los Pinos

4. Estimate of inundation resulting from full culvert blockage at Tierra Blanca

5. Exercise: Potential culvert design for highways within both watersheds

Concerns

· How can we get DEM data that can be used with WMS?

· Will this be precise enough to take into account highway fill and dikes?

· How do we get precipitation rates, land use, and soil types?

· Will land use be current?

· How can we get a comprehensive view of the flood control system in each watershed?

· How can we most effectively communicate with counterparts in Mexico without a bilingual team member?