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City uses OASIS hydrologic model, local gauges and Army Corps data to guide water restrictions
Summary
Raleigh staff described a water shortage response plan built on the OASIS hydrologic model (nearly 96 years of data), local COCOHAS rainfall gauges, and Army Corps lake-level information to set month-to-month triggers for restrictions and planning.
Raleigh Water officials said the city relies on a hydrologic model called OASIS and a trigger system that adjusts month to month based on available water at Falls Lake.
"Several years ago, we developed a water shortage response plan based on a hydrologic model called OASIS," Ed Buckin said, noting the model can be run against roughly 96 years of records to estimate how the watershed and Falls Lake would behave under different conditions. Buckin said that historical modeling helps staff set conservative operational choices and water-use restrictions.
Buckin also cited COCOHAS—local rainfall gauges that supplement National Weather Service data—and the Army Corps of Engineers, which manages Falls Lake levels, as important data sources for interpreting whether recent rain actually benefits the reservoir. He said the model helps project likely conditions for August through October and supports decisionmaking about restrictions and customer communications.
