A dynamic simulation based water resources education tool

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Abstract

Educational tools to assist the public in recognizing impacts of water policy in a realistic context are not generally available. This project developed systems with modeling-based educational decision support simulation tools to satisfy this need. The goal of this model is to teach undergraduate students and the general public about the implications of common water management alternatives so that they can better understand or become involved in water policy and make more knowledgeable personal or community decisions.

The model is based on Powersim, a dynamic simulation software package capable of producing web-accessible, intuitive, graphic, user-friendly interfaces. Modules are included to represent residential, agricultural, industrial, and turf uses, as well as non-market values, water quality, reservoir, flow, and climate conditions. Supplementary materials emphasize important concepts and lead learners through the model, culminating in an open-ended water management project.

The model is used in a University of Arizona undergraduate class and within the Arizona Master Watershed Stewards Program. Evaluation results demonstrated improved understanding of concepts and system interactions, fulfilling the project's objectives.

Introduction

The complexities of water resources systems can make it difficult for students and the public to understand the impacts of management decisions and the effects of conflicting uses, including their own, on the water balance. Water resources education opportunities are limited for adults who often have never learned more about water than the hydrologic cycle. A ‘big picture’ educational tool allows effective management and conservation alternatives to be considered and discussed. This tool enables adults to better understand water policy and resources in their community, thereby allowing them to participate in the development of equitable and sustainable water management as informed stakeholders. This article presents such a tool that is developed using dynamic simulation software, has supporting documentation and tutorials and is user friendly and intuitive.

Modeling has often been relegated to the academic and professional world, but, in the proper context, it can also be useful as an interactive and educational tool for non-technical individuals. “System dynamics can promote public participation by showing that our choices can affect the direction the future takes” (Stave, 2002, p. 165). System modeling enables the trial of policy options without having to accept the consequences (Shultz and Holbrook, 1999), as well as quick feedback from these options (Stave, 2002). Stave (2002, p. 144) states that, “For learning, models offer virtual worlds that allow people to discover for themselves how complex systems work through experimentation”. Costanza and Ruth (1998, p. 186) conclude, “Thus, the modeling approach is not only dynamic with respect to the behavior of the system itself but also with respect to the learning process that is initiated among decision makers as they observe the system's dynamics unfold”. System dynamics modeling allows any model user to be a decision-maker for educational and exploratory purposes.

System dynamics modeling has been used to highlight water management issues (Simonovic and Bender, 1996). It has recently been pioneered in public settings to help build policy or consensus for a policy (Stave, 2002, Stave, 2003, Simonovic and Bender, 1996, Costanza and Matthias, 1998 Passell et al., 2002). Tidwell et al. (2004) and Cockerill et al., 2005, Cockerill et al., 2006 applied system dynamics modeling with the goal of providing knowledge to the general public regarding the water issues in the Middle Rio Grande (NM). However, the use of modeling in strictly educational forms is limited, and this is the need the model herein was designed to fill.

Section snippets

Water resources education model objectives

This model was developed as a tool to improve hydrologic literacy among college students and other adults. The model should also be accessible to high school students. The overarching objective of the model is to learn water resources principles and be capable of understanding their implications within a watershed. The three specific model goals are:

  • 1.

    To provide users an understanding of critical hydrologic and water resource concepts, including consumptive use, population impacts on water

Water resources education model structure

The overall model simulates the generic semi-arid region in Fig. 1 that contains various water supplies and demand sectors. The model has a time-step of 1 year with a simulation period of 25 years. The model consists of the following supplies: one river, one dammed river (reservoir), one aquifer, treated effluent, and options for imported or tribal water. Demand is based on an initial population of 675 000 with a population growth rate of 2.0%, which is one of the most important factors in the

User interfaces

The modules described above are modeled using Powersim Studio (Powersim, 2003). The resulting Powersim model is represented graphically with supporting equations that can be easily accessed, examined, and, if desired, changed. For user ease, Powersim includes a presentation mode in which user interfaces are constructed to display the essential input parameters and output variables. The main presentation mode interface page (Fig. 2) allows the user to select either a basic or advanced version as

Supplementary materials

To achieve the noted goals, a set of supplementary materials have been prepared that emphasize certain concepts. The activities include Introductory Model Questions, a Water Management Project, and Control Case Studies. In addition, a User's Manual was developed as an instructor aid or for those teaching themselves. Although this model was not developed in a participatory process, it was designed to open discussion regarding water resources, with many questions and activities left open-ended.

Implementation results

A preliminary implementation and evaluation was completed in the Spring 2005 semester of the University of Arizona course, Hydrology and Water Resources (HWR) 203 entitled Arizona Water Issues. This implementation used three class periods totaling 3 h and 45 min and involved 55, primarily lower division, students. After that offering, the model and supplementary materials were refined for implementation in Fall 2005. The second classroom implementation used four class periods totaling 5 h with 45

Conclusions and future work

The main goal of this work was to develop ‘big picture’ water-system educational tools that are useful to a wide and diverse audience of college students and other adults. An example of the success of this project was observed even with students who were apathetic and had low attendance. Thus, the success of the model in the Fall 2005 HWR 203 class as shown by evaluation results demonstrate that not only does the model meet the overall ‘big picture’ goal, but it also provides an alternative

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge and appreciate the input and support of Candice Rupprecht, Paul Wilson, Steve Stewart, Robert Emmanuel, Michael Crimmins, Derya Sumer, and Gunhui Chung. This work was supported by the University of Arizona, Technology and Research Initiative Fund (TRIF), Water Sustainability Program and by SAHRA (Sustainability of semi-Arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas) under the STC Program of the National Science Foundation, Agreement No. EAR-9876800. Any opinions, findings, and

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