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Scientists at the Columbia River Research Laboratory and the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center are developing geographic information system (GIS) based tools to assist managers with making decisions regarding the natural resources in and around the John Day Reservoir (see map). The reservoir, also known as Lake Umatilla, was created in 1968 when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed the John Day Dam on the Columbia River. The reservoir is 76 miles long and is bounded by John Day Dam on the western downstream end and McNary Dam on the eastern upstream end. Power generation, irrigation, navigation, angling, and windsurfing are some of society's uses of John Day Reservoir. The reservoir hosts many species of fish and wildlife, including several species of threatened or endangered salmon, and is important to migratory birds that visit or nest at the Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge and other nearby wildlife areas. The USGS is working with fish and wildlife managers to develop decision support tools that can be used by people with a variety of computing skills and capabilities. One example that requires no specialized computer software or capabilities is this easy-to-use mapping program being designed for use at the Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge: Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge Mapping Tool
Other, more analytical tools will be developed for use by scientists and other professionals. These tools, which require the user to have specialized computer software, will provide for more detailed analyses and in the planning and design of future research. These tools will help bring researchers together with managers to help make the best use our natural resources based on current scientific knowledge. Here is an example of a system which uses ESRI's ArcView GIS software as its platform: Decision Support System for John Day Reservoir
This set of tools, in conjunction with 2-dimensional hydraulic modeling, is being used to estimate the effects of reservoir level and water discharge fluctuations on aquatic and terrestrial habitats in John Day Reservoir. Different scenarios being studied now range from typical reservoir levels at high and low discharges to a simulation of what things might be like if the river were to return to natural conditions. Read more about the John Day Reservoir Decision Support System Project Project Contact Michael J. Parsley Email: mike_parsley@usgs.gov Publications
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