Aiming to Improve Water Availability

The Conjunctive Freshwater Saltwater Management project aims to enhance water availability in southwest Oklahoma by researching opportunities to blend fresh & brackish water. Using SWAT-MODFLOW modeling and salinity monitoring, researchers assess the timing, quantity and location of usable water to evaluate opportunities to safely irrigate crops without harming soil or downstream quality in the Red River Basin.

 

What is Brackish Water?

Freshwater TDS (total dissolved solids, i.e. salinity levels) <1,000 mg/L

Brackish TDS = 1,000-10,000 mg/L

Seawater TDS > 35,000 mg/L

 

Most brackish water in Oklahoma is naturally occurring. Natural salt deposits and salt springs, particularly in west and southwest Oklahoma, impact both surface water and groundwater in the region. 

 

Why the Red River Basin?

The Red River "of the south" forms part of the boundary between Texas and Oklahoma, flowing through an area with significant deposits of Permian age salts and is brackish above Lake Texoma. Freshwater availability in this semi-arid region is becoming less reliable.

 

To address this, the CFSM project is evaluating the use of alternative supplies (brackish water) to stretch freshwater supplies, particularly in drought years.

 

Day in the life:

 

Partners of the OWRC

• Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (BAE)

• Colorado State University

• University of Nebraska-Lincoln

 

This work is supported by USDA-NIFA grant number 2022-67020-36412.