{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/99428"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/99428","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Hard and soft cap groundwater allocations: a comparison of groundwater pumping restrictions on hydrologic and economic outcomes","abstract":"\"While groundwater is an important primary and supplementary source of water in the western United States, its overuse can lead to negative consequences such as stream depletion, seawater intrusion, or land subsidence. An increasing number of groundwater management districts are restricting individual pumping in an effort to limit, or even reverse, such consequences. The nature of groundwater availability lends itself to more flexible allocation schemes, which I call \"\"hard caps\"\" and \"\"soft caps.\"\" While a hard cap sets a groundwater user's maximum pumping in a single year, a soft cap allows a groundwater user to meet a multi-year average so that the user may pump more in some years and less in others. While there are many examples of hard and soft caps for groundwater in practice, no study to date has compared the resulting hydrologic and economic outcomes of each scheme. Using coupled agronomic, economic, and hydrologic models, I examine the performance of hard and soft caps for groundwater-fed irrigation. Irrigated agriculture uses the majority of groundwater in the United States and therefore the sector represents a significant stakeholder in the development of allocation schemes. I model the profit-maximizing decisions for an agricultural producer growing irrigated corn in western Nebraska. I illustrate the hydrologic and economic outcomes in the case of groundwater-induced stream depletion, which is a spatially and temporally heterogeneous consequence, or externality, of groundwater pumping. To do so, I combine datasets on regional climate, soils, economic parameters, and aquifer properties and use them as inputs to an instraseasonal crop-water model, an economic optimization, and a stream depletion model. I show that at moderate allocation levels, the soft cap results in higher expected profits and lower variance of profits. However, it can come at a cost: In exceptionally dry years, the soft cap can result in acute groundwater pumping, and therefore, stream depletion. The severity of this result depends on the hydrologic properties of the aquifer and well location. At non-binding or very binding allocation levels, the performances of the caps are similar. The implications for developing appropriately flexible allocations will depend on the combined needs for groundwater management and well-specific properties, meaning that a blended approach to caps in some instances may be desirable.\"","abstract_html":""While groundwater is an important primary and supplementary source of water in the western United States, its overuse can lead to negative consequences such as stream depletion, seawater intrusion, or land subsidence. An increasing number of groundwater management districts are restricting individual pumping in an effort to limit, or even reverse, such consequences. The nature of groundwater availability lends itself to more flexible allocation schemes, which I call ""hard caps"" and ""soft caps."" While a hard cap sets a groundwater user's maximum pumping in a single year, a soft cap allows a groundwater user to meet a multi-year average so that the user may pump more in some years and less in others. While there are many examples of hard and soft caps for groundwater in practice, no study to date has compared the resulting hydrologic and economic outcomes of each scheme. Using coupled agronomic, economic, and hydrologic models, I examine the performance of hard and soft caps for groundwater-fed irrigation. Irrigated agriculture uses the majority of groundwater in the United States and therefore the sector represents a significant stakeholder in the development of allocation schemes. I model the profit-maximizing decisions for an agricultural producer growing irrigated corn in western Nebraska. I illustrate the hydrologic and economic outcomes in the case of groundwater-induced stream depletion, which is a spatially and temporally heterogeneous consequence, or externality, of groundwater pumping. To do so, I combine datasets on regional climate, soils, economic parameters, and aquifer properties and use them as inputs to an instraseasonal crop-water model, an economic optimization, and a stream depletion model. I show that at moderate allocation levels, the soft cap results in higher expected profits and lower variance of profits. However, it can come at a cost: In exceptionally dry years, the soft cap can result in acute groundwater pumping, and therefore, stream depletion. The severity of this result depends on the hydrologic properties of the aquifer and well location. At non-binding or very binding allocation levels, the performances of the caps are similar. The implications for developing appropriately flexible allocations will depend on the combined needs for groundwater management and well-specific properties, meaning that a blended approach to caps in some instances may be desirable."","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Young, Richael Kentlee"],"institution":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"M.S.","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Environ Engr in Civil Engr","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Valocchi, Albert J."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-03-13T15:49:16Z","date_published":"2018-03-13T15:49:16Z","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:37Z","subjects":["Groundwater","Irrigation","Agriculture","Groundwater management","Policy"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright 2017 Richael Kentlee Young"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/2142/99428","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Valocchi, Albert J."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Young, Richael Kentlee"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2018-03-13T15:49:16Z","2017-12-14","2017-12"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Environ Engr in Civil Engr"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.S."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Groundwater","Irrigation","Agriculture","Groundwater management","Policy"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2017 Richael Kentlee Young"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/2142/99428"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["\"While groundwater is an important primary and supplementary source of water in the western United States, its overuse can lead to negative consequences such as stream depletion, seawater intrusion, or land subsidence. An increasing number of groundwater management districts are restricting individual pumping in an effort to limit, or even reverse, such consequences. The nature of groundwater availability lends itself to more flexible allocation schemes, which I call \"\"hard caps\"\" and \"\"soft caps.\"\" While a hard cap sets a groundwater user's maximum pumping in a single year, a soft cap allows a groundwater user to meet a multi-year average so that the user may pump more in some years and less in others. While there are many examples of hard and soft caps for groundwater in practice, no study to date has compared the resulting hydrologic and economic outcomes of each scheme. Using coupled agronomic, economic, and hydrologic models, I examine the performance of hard and soft caps for groundwater-fed irrigation. Irrigated agriculture uses the majority of groundwater in the United States and therefore the sector represents a significant stakeholder in the development of allocation schemes. I model the profit-maximizing decisions for an agricultural producer growing irrigated corn in western Nebraska. I illustrate the hydrologic and economic outcomes in the case of groundwater-induced stream depletion, which is a spatially and temporally heterogeneous consequence, or externality, of groundwater pumping. To do so, I combine datasets on regional climate, soils, economic parameters, and aquifer properties and use them as inputs to an instraseasonal crop-water model, an economic optimization, and a stream depletion model. I show that at moderate allocation levels, the soft cap results in higher expected profits and lower variance of profits. However, it can come at a cost: In exceptionally dry years, the soft cap can result in acute groundwater pumping, and therefore, stream depletion. The severity of this result depends on the hydrologic properties of the aquifer and well location. At non-binding or very binding allocation levels, the performances of the caps are similar. The implications for developing appropriately flexible allocations will depend on the combined needs for groundwater management and well-specific properties, meaning that a blended approach to caps in some instances may be desirable.\"","Submission original under an indefinite embargo labeled 'Open Access'. The submission was exported from vireo on 2018-03-13 without embargo terms","The student, Richael Young, accepted the attached license on 2017-12-13 at 11:33.","The student, Richael Young, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2017-12-13 at 12:18.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2017-12-14 at 15:55.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #11970 on 2018-03-13 at 10:12:23","Made available in DSpace on 2018-03-13T15:49:16Z (GMT). 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An increasing number of groundwater management districts are restricting individual pumping in an effort to limit, or even reverse, such consequences. The nature of groundwater availability lends itself to more flexible allocation schemes, which I call \"\"hard caps\"\" and \"\"soft caps.\"\" While a hard cap sets a groundwater user's maximum pumping in a single year, a soft cap allows a groundwater user to meet a multi-year average so that the user may pump more in some years and less in others. While there are many examples of hard and soft caps for groundwater in practice, no study to date has compared the resulting hydrologic and economic outcomes of each scheme. Using coupled agronomic, economic, and hydrologic models, I examine the performance of hard and soft caps for groundwater-fed irrigation. Irrigated agriculture uses the majority of groundwater in the United States and therefore the sector represents a significant stakeholder in the development of allocation schemes. I model the profit-maximizing decisions for an agricultural producer growing irrigated corn in western Nebraska. I illustrate the hydrologic and economic outcomes in the case of groundwater-induced stream depletion, which is a spatially and temporally heterogeneous consequence, or externality, of groundwater pumping. To do so, I combine datasets on regional climate, soils, economic parameters, and aquifer properties and use them as inputs to an instraseasonal crop-water model, an economic optimization, and a stream depletion model. I show that at moderate allocation levels, the soft cap results in higher expected profits and lower variance of profits. However, it can come at a cost: In exceptionally dry years, the soft cap can result in acute groundwater pumping, and therefore, stream depletion. The severity of this result depends on the hydrologic properties of the aquifer and well location. At non-binding or very binding allocation levels, the performances of the caps are similar. The implications for developing appropriately flexible allocations will depend on the combined needs for groundwater management and well-specific properties, meaning that a blended approach to caps in some instances may be desirable.\"","Submission original under an indefinite embargo labeled 'Open Access'. The submission was exported from vireo on 2018-03-13 without embargo terms","The student, Richael Young, accepted the attached license on 2017-12-13 at 11:33.","The student, Richael Young, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2017-12-13 at 12:18.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2017-12-14 at 15:55.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #11970 on 2018-03-13 at 10:12:23","Made available in DSpace on 2018-03-13T15:49:16Z (GMT). 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