Citation:

Detenbeck, N. Watershed Management Optimization Support Tool (WMOST) Webinar. US EPA Tools and Resources Webinar Series, Narragansett, RI, February 21, 2018.

Impact/Purpose:

EPA researchers develop environmental and health-relevant tools with one overarching goal – to help solve problems. To help ensure that the tools and resources EPA develops are accessible and useful to needs on the ground, EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) will host a monthly Tools and Resources webinar to share our research, demonstrate tools and seek input from our partners.

Description:

This webinar will highlight version 3 of EPA’s Watershed Management Optimization Support Tool (WMOST). WMOST facilitates implementation of integrated water management by communities, utilities, watershed management organizations, consultants, and others. There can be many objectives for management of water resources, with priorities depending on the goals of communities, utilities, and watershed organizations. These might, for example, be sustainable water supply, support for fish/shellfish populations, flood reduction, etc., as well as addressing multiple regulatory constraints, e.g., water quality criteria, pollutant load targets in TMDLs or Watershed Implementation Plans, water withdrawal permits and/or state environmental flow criteria, MS4 stormwater permits, or CSO consent decrees. WMOST allows stakeholders to identify their goals and constraints, then WMOST presents the most cost effective suite of management options across stormwater, drinking water, wastewater, and land conservation programs. Numerous green infrastructure practices are included as potential management options. WMOST provides a user-friendly interface (within a Microsoft ® Excel spreadsheet) that has embedded instructions to guide the user through data entry, selection of potential management practices and constraints, optimization, and display of results. An internet connection is required for version 3 to download pre-processed input files, if needed, and to run optimization analysis. WMOST-created optimization files are sent to the online server NEOS, which sends the optimization results back to the user for import and display in WMOST v3. Two case studies will be explored. In the first case, WMOST v3 is being used by the State of Maryland’s Department of Environment to identify the most cost-effective suite of stormwater best management practices for meeting a typical community’s water management goals. The representative community case, in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, is intended to form the basis for guidance for counties and communities in similar settings as they implement their Watershed Implementation Plans to meet Chesapeake Bay TMDL targets for nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment loads, as well as meeting local targets for sediment load reductions. In the second case, WMOST v3 is being used by a consortium of communities, regional development commissions, NGOs, and watershed organizations in the upper Taunton River watershed in Massachusetts. Here, WMOST is being used to determine the most cost-effective options to meet water quality (criteria, TMDLs), water quantity targets (maintaining base flows, water supplies, and reducing flooding and CSO impacts), and land conservation goals under both current and future growth and climate scenarios.

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