VICKSBURG, Miss. - With recent funding approval, it’s full speed ahead for EL’s Dr. Carl Cerco as he and his project delivery team (PDT) develop the water quality Integrated Compartment Model (ICM) LITE tool, with the “LITE” name borrowed from popular adult beverages instead of the often-used industrial-type acronym.
“LITE means this is a lighter version of the complete Corps of Engineers Integrated Compartment Water Quality Model (CE-QUAL-ICM). That is a complex tool which requires extensive expertise to set up and then operate the more-than-30 state variables using an accompanying multi-dimensional hydrodynamic model.
“Our first activity is to reduce the complexity of what we simply refer to as ICM. We will ‘cut it down’ to a smaller suite of just eight to 10 crucial water quality parameters, such as dissolved oxygen, temperature and turbidity. We will test the applicability of the reduced model in several demonstration sites suggested by members of our PDT,” Cerco said.
Cerco explained that the Corps needs to quantify ecosystem benefits to the aquatic environment that result from Corps restoration projects. “The Corps presently operates a number of predictive hydrodynamic and water quality models suited for this purpose. While these tools are superb, their utility can be limited since they are complex and their application requires the participation of skilled specialists.
“Directives within our own organization, as well as the present economic climate, require us to develop a set of simpler tools that can be readily applied. There will always be problems which require the highest level of detailed analysis, but we have to recognize that a basic approach provides the necessary information for many planning activities,” Cerco said.
PDT Members and planning ahead
Cerco’s team-mates include Janet Cote, Norfolk District; Thomas Maier, Pittsburgh District; Jim Noren, St. Paul District; and Nathan Richards, Rock Island District and a designated member of the National Ecosystem Planning Center of Expertise (ECO-PCX).
“Corps planning tools require certification. The certification process can be lengthy and confusing. As an important aspect of our project, we include a member of the ECO-PCX on our PDT, so we consider the certification process from the outset,” Cerco said.
Cerco outlined the second phase of the project as facilitating the application of the basic model.
“We will do this through development of a graphical user interface (GUI). At the same time, we will work on converting water quality parameters into ecosystem benefits. Not everyone can interpret the dissolved oxygen concentration that will result from a project. Everyone wants to know, ‘Can I catch a fish?’ The oxygen and temperature have to be right for fish to survive, but the conversion between these parameters and fish habitat will be done inside the user interface.
“The code and GUI will be developed in concert with the PDT. The final stage of the project will be completion of the GUI, which will quantify ecosystem benefits and provide for uncertainty analysis,” Cerco said.
Project approval process
Initially proposed in Oct. 2012, the project was reviewed by the Environmental Research Area Review Group. This group consists of district and division representatives, generally planning proponents and practitioners, approved by Corps headquarters to review and prioritize ongoing and proposed research for the Ecosystem Management and Restoration Research Program (EMRRP). The group ensures proposals to EMRRP are relevant and meet the needs of Corps’ planning personnel.
The EMRRP is the Corps' responsive, tactical research and development response to the demand for new and expanding technologies to address the need for ecosystem assessment, restoration, and management activities at the project level.
The EMRRP provides rapid, cost-effective technology to meet the Corps' most pressing research and development needs in functional assessment, restoration, and stewardship of high priority ecosystems. It is targeted toward ecosystems of particular concern to the Corps, namely streams, riparian corridors, wetlands, and special aquatic sites. Technologies developed under the EMRRP build upon a sound understanding of ecosystem functions, which lead to sustainable stewardship of Corps resources.
Cerco presented his project to the EMRRP review panel in Nov. 2013 and received notice of funding for ICM LITE tool development in mid-Jan. 2014.
Project benefits and timeline
Citing the major benefits of ICM LITE, Cerco said, “The first is the quantification of ecosystem benefits. This will help district offices fulfill their mission. The second benefit is ease of use by district personnel. This should translate into faster, more economical analysis of proposed Corps projects.
“We anticipate the first year (through Sept. 2014) will be devoted to simplifying the code and to an initial application. The second year (Oct. 2014 – Sept. 2015) will be devoted to developing the initial GUI and quantifying ecosystem benefits. The third year will be finalizing the GUI, incorporating uncertainty analysis, and completing the demonstration applications,” Cerco said.
Cerco is a member of EL’s Water Quality and Contaminant Modeling Branch. Besides ICM LITE, he is currently involved in a project to determine the origin of Asian carp DNA in the Chicago Waterways System. Cerco first joined ERDC in Sept. 1987, five years after obtaining his doctorate in marine science from the College of William and Mary.
He has worked in inland and coastal waters, modeled conventional substances such as dissolved oxygen as well as contaminants and pH, focused on specialties in sediment-water interactions and the use of oysters for water quality remediation.
Now Cerco moves on to his newest tool creation venture with this prediction, “I expect to retire around the time frame for completion of this project. I hope I can leave ICM LITE as a legacy.”