Arroyo Colorado Watershed Protection Plan Update
A completed project that updated aspects of the Arroyo Colorado Watershed Protection Plan (WPP).
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Background
The Arroyo Colorado Tidal sometimes experiences periods of low dissolved oxygen, which can result in adverse wildlife conditions and sometimes in fish kills. Dissolved oxygen is essential for the survival of aquatic life, and so is used to indicate whether conditions support a healthy aquatic life community. All of the state's assessments of water quality from 1996 through 2000 have classified this segment as having an impaired aquatic life use due to the low dissolved oxygen levels.
To restore water quality, the Arroyo Colorado Watershed Partnership developed the Arroyo Colorado WPP in 2007. Implementation of the plan has been ongoing since then.

Project Description
This project, led by Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI), supplemented the existing Soil and Watershed Assessment Tool model for the segment with a receiving water model to simulate the dissolved oxygen dynamics in this tidal environment. The model evaluated the potential effects of a variety of proposed management measures.
The Arroyo Colorado Partnership reviewed the results of the model simulations, proposed alternative scenarios to simulate achievement of the dissolved oxygen standard, and incorporated the results and proposals into an updated WPP document. TWRI completed the project in 2017.

For More Information
To find out more about the NPS Program, call 512-239-6682 or e-mail us at nps@tceq.texas.gov.
