Jon Albright, Freese and Nichols, Inc.

Abstract: In May 2010, Freese and Nichols, Inc. (FNI) completed an environmental flow study for the proposed Lower Bois d’Arc Creek Reservoir. The reservoir will provide over 120,000 acre-feet per year to the North Texas Municipal Water District. The District currently supplies water to more than 1.6 million people in the suburban Dallas area. The instream flow study was performed as part of the water rights application for the proposed reservoir. FNI developed a set of proposed environmental flow releases from the reservoir based on both field measurements and habitat and sediment modeling. RiverWare was used to evaluate the long-term behavior of the watershed below the reservoir using the proposed releases, as well to determine the impact on these releases on the yield of the reservoir. The study found that the proposed releases should support a sound ecological environment in the reach below the reservoir.