Catchment management-model evaluation : verifying data for the implementation of the water release module of the WAS program

Abstract

The Water Administration System (WAS) is designed to be a management tool for irrigation schemes and water offices that want to manage their water accounts and supply to clients through canal networks, pipelines and rivers. The ultimate aim of WAS is to optimize irrigation water management and minimize management-related distribution losses in irrigation canals. This research project focus on the implementation of the water release module of the WAS program at the Vaalharts irrigation scheme. WAS consists of four modules that are integrated into a single program that can be used on a single PC, a PC network system (in use currently at Vaalharts) or a multi-user environment. These modules can be implemented partially or as a whole, depending on the requirements of the specific scheme or office. The four modules are an administration module, a water request module; water accounts module and a water release module. The first three modules are already implemented at Vaalharts, while module four is implemented only partially. This module links with the water request module and calculates water releases for the main canal and all its branches allowing for lag times and any water losses and accruals. Any researcher in this field should first understand where water comes from and how it will be utilized before any calculations are attempted. Only then manipulation of the release volume can commence. To precisely calculate this water release, accurate data is needed to ensure that the correct volume of water is released into the canal network. This can be done by verifying existing data with field data. To optimize the management of the irrigation scheme the fully implemented WAS program need to be installed and running at the scheme. A series of data and calculation verification needs to be executed. The exercise will show the adequacy and correctness of the available database WAS uses to do the release calculation from. This will ensure improved management of the irrigation scheme, catchment and water resource sustainability. It is planned that the information generated from this project will be used in the compilation of an integrated catchment management information system, currently underway in the school of Civil Engineering and Built Environment at the Central University of Technology, Free State, South Africa.