Evolutionary Algorithm Optimization of a Multireservoir System with Long Lag Times

Abstract

A scenario of particular importance in water resources management occurs when reservoir release decisions must be made well in advance of accurate hydrologic forecasts because of long travel times between reservoir releases and demand. This type of situation is evaluated using the Washington metropolitan area (WMA) water supply as a case study. Several classes of operating rules are evaluated using a state-of-the-art multiobjective evolutionary algorithm linked to a hydrologic simulation/decision model. Operating rules were evaluated using historical Potomac River streamflows (1929–2007) and synthetically generated time series. The proposed optimization framework is effective for a wide range of water resources vulnerability studies and was successful in improving the efficiency of the WMA system with respect to competing objectives ranging from reservoir storage to recreation and environmental flow requirements.