Follow-up workshop: Tree-ring-based streamflow reconstructions for the Rio Grande basin
Albuquerque, NM - May 30, 2008

 

This workshop was the follow-up to the workshop we held in Albuquerque in November 2007, and was the third stage of a NOAA-funded project to expand and improve the usability of tree-ring reconstructions for drought planning and water management in the Rio Grande basin. Along with the convenors (Lukas, Woodhouse, Bathke, Meko, Touchan, Garfin, Hartmann, and Guido), there were 19 workshop participants--8 of whom were also at the first workshop--representing a broad array of water management and stakeholder interests in the Rio Grande basin (see participant list).

The workshop was split into two sessions: the morning was a review of "Tree Ring 101"--how streamflow reconstructions are developed and applied to water management--intended mainly for the new participants, and the afternoon was devoted to the presentation of new reconstructions and other data products developed with input from participants in the first workshop. The reconstructions and data products are available on the Rio Grande TreeFlow web page.

The morning session concluded with a good discussion of how climate information outside of the observed record--both paleo-data and future climate projections--are being considered and used by the participants' organizations and their stakeholders and decisionmakers. The afternoon session also included a demonstration of the online paleohydrology analysis tools, a presentation on a new non-parametric reconstruction technique that will be used in a project with the NM Interstate Stream Commission, and concluded with a discussion of needs for additional paleo-information beyond what was presented in the afternoon.

 

Links to workshop presentations (all PDF):

Morning:

Jeff Lukas and Connie Woodhouse: Tree-ring-based streamflow reconstructions for the Rio Grande basin ("Tree-Ring 101")

Afternoon:

Ramzi Touchan: 343-year precipitation reconstruction for northern New Mexico

David Meko: New streamflow reconstructions for the Rio Grande basin

Subhrendu Gangopadhyay, AMEC Earth and Environmental: Non-parametric paleo-reconstruction of Lees Ferry Flows

 

On the Monday following the workshop (June 2), I gave a lunch presentation to about 20 members of the New Mexico chapter of the American Water Resources Association--essentially a condensed version of the workshop: The long view of the Rio: What tree rings tell us about the past variability of the Rio Grande

While the Rio Grande streamflow reconstruction project formally concludes as of summer 2008, we will remain available to assist in the application of the reconstructions, and potentially develop additional data products. We encourage the workshop participants, and other water managers and stakeholders in the basin, to contact us if they have questions, comments, or requests for assistance or information.

Jeff Lukas, University of Colorado & WWA

for the Rio Grande project team:

Connie Woodhouse, University of Arizona
Brad Udall, Western Water Assessment, University of Colorado
Deborah Bathke, University of Nebraska
Gregg Garfin, ISPE, University of Arizona
David Meko, LTRR, University of Arizona
Ramzi Touchan, LTRR, University of Arizona
Holly Hartmann, University of Arizona
Zack Guido, CLIMAS, University of Arizona

 

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