Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID IL_2023_Li

Assessing the Vulnerability of Public Water Systems to Droughts with an Integrated Remote Sensing and Social Sensing Approach

Institute: Illinois
Year Established: 2023 Start Date: 2023-09-01 End Date: 2024-08-31
Total Federal Funds: $15,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $15,726

Principal Investigators: Ruopu Li

Project Summary: Nationwide, small- to medium-sized reservoirs provide water supplies for many local municipalities. However, the impacts of drought on water supplies and communities were rarely monitored due to limitations of resources. It is especially a challenging task to understand the thresholds of drought conditions that may trigger differential levels of social impacts and responses. As traditional remote sensing methods cannot effectively represent social vulnerability and resilience, innovative approaches that integrate environmental monitoring and social vulnerability are critically needed. This project proposes to use an integrated remote sensing, hydrological modeling, and social sensing approach to better understand the thresholds and triggers to specific drought impacts. We will select reservoirs from the Illinois Reservoir Observation Network. This approach is expected to bridge the gap between physical droughts and social responses from our communities.