A variety of modeling activities are taking place within the Palouse Basin to understand the characteristics of and dynamic interactions occuring within the hydrologic system in order to determine the sustainability of our water resources.

A "system" is something that has multiple and interacting elements. There are both natural and human elements in water resources systems. The foundation of the natural system is the hydrologic cycle, itself a system of spatially and temporally complex interactions between precipitation, evapotranspiration, streamflow, and groundwater, driven primarily by solar energy and gravity. Both flora and fauna depend upon and interact with the natural hydrologic cycle. Humans also depend upon and interact with the hydrologic cycle through, for example, municipal and agricultural withdrawals, and wastewater and stormwater discharges, as a function of social values, economics, and laws. In many cases, the human component overwhelms and degrades certain aspects of the natural system, often to the point where the human component itself is compromised over the long term. The goal of sustainable water resources systems management is to strike a suitable balance between the natural and human elements by making informed decisions.

To better understand the water resources system of the Palouse Basin, we are developing various systems models of the basin. For example, a simple systems model of basin land-surface hydrology might look like:

Surface water systems model

... a more complex picture of the water resource system begins to emerge:

Composite systems model

Though still a simple depiction of the water resources system of the Palouse Basin, these models can be used to explore trends and help the community and decision makers to better understand the complex system in which they live, and to make more informed decisions.