June Slugs and Steins with Distinguished Professor Andrew Fisher
Opportunities to enhance groundwater recharge with net metering and levee setbacks
Groundwater resources are stressed by increasing demand, shifting land use, and a changing climate. Managed recharge is a set of tools and techniques that can enhance the routing of surface water into aquifers, to supplement naturally occurring processes and move water budgets towards balance. Managed recharge can provide multiple benefits for people, agriculture, aquatic systems, and hydrologic system services more generally. Stormwater runoff is one potential surface water source that can help to supply managed recharge, but we have a lot to learn about where and how to do so effectively and without causing unintended harm. This talk will provide an overview of some managed recharge options and considerations, including demonstration of efficacy for using excess surface flows during and after major rain events, and explain the basis for a novel incentive program developed to compensate landowners and tenants who host and maintain managed recharge systems on their properties. We will also consider links between flood-risk mitigation and multi-benefit improvements that could be combined with levee realignment efforts, as are needed for many river and stream systems.