Hydrologic modeling of the Pecos River basin below Red Bluff Reservoir

Abstract

The segment of the Pecos River that extends from Red Bluff Reservoir until it discharges to the Rio Grande/Bravo near Langtry was studied in this project. Hydrologic behavior of the basin was analyzed between 1981 and 2000, the first ten year period for calibration and the second ten year period for validation by using Water Evaluation and Planning Software (WEAP, SEI, 2006). Simulated streamflows were compared with naturalized streamflows (RJBCO, 2003) at two control points, one in the middle of the basin near Girvin and the other one is at the end of the basin near Langtry. The purpose of the project is to create a valid model for water availability simulations in the Pecos River Basin to be used for future water availability simulations considering climate change effects. The basin was divided into two parts in order to evaluate the results, the upper basin and the entire basin (below Red Bluff reservoir) according to the location of control gages. Simulated streamflows closely match the naturalized flows at the Girvin station in the upper basin. Although the results at the Langtry station for the entire basin are not as good as Girvin, the model still reproduces streamflows well enough to represent the hydrologic behavior of the basin, especially for the base flow. Considering the complex geological structure of the Pecos River Basin below Red Bluff Reservoir, the results can be considered satisfactory. The model can be used for future water availability predictions in the basin considering climate change effects.