Surface Water Flows in the Upper Rio Grande Basin Have Been Decreasing for the Past 130 Years

The first ever USGS stream gauge station was installed on the Rio Grande River at Embudo, NM in January 1889. This stream gauge station has remained active from 1889-present with a small gap in data collection from 1904-1912. This long record of daily discharge data is unique, and allows for researchers to evaluate long-term trends in surface water runoff. This dataset also provides insights into the effects of climate change and land use in the Upper Rio Grande Basin. The Bureau of Reclamation office in Albuquerque released a climate risk assessment for the Upper Rio Grande Basin in December of 2013 (link below). In the report, they document that average temperatures in the Upper Rio Grand Basin have risen by 0.7°F per decade since the 1970's resulting in over 2.5°F of total average annual temperature warming. Average Annual temperatures are expected to rise 4-6°F by the end of the 21st century in this region. Reduced surface water flows on the Rio Grande can be attributed to climate change and land use practices in the region (reduced snowpack, increased evaporation, irrigation farming). The water shortage is placing stress on communities and water resource infrastructure.

First USGS Gauging Station

• https://www.usgs.gov/news/featured-story/past-present-and-future-usgs-streamgages#:~:text=Their%20methods%20generally%20involved%20constructing,Grande%20near%20Embudo%2C%20New%20Mexico.

Bureau of Reclamation Climate Impact Assesment

• https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/baseline/docs/urgia/URGIAMainReport.pdf

Discharge for the Rio Grande River near Embudo has been decreaseing since the late 1800's

Annual Maxuimum Peak Discharges for the Rio Grande River Near Espanola, NM Have Continuously Decreased Over the Past 130 Years

The Rio Grande River at Embudo, NM has not experienced a flood with a return interval greater than 20 years since the 1940's

Data Source:

The data included in this file is from a web-based data repository for the USGS gauging station number 08279500 Rio Grande River at Embudo, NM . Mean daily peak discharge data (cubic feet / second) is included for the time period 0f 01/01/1889-9/20/2023.

Citation:

U.S. Geological Survey, 2016, National Water Information System data available on the World Wide Web (USGS Water Data for the Nation), accessed September-20, 2023, at URL https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/dv?cb_00060=on&format=rdb&site_no=08279500&legacy=&referred_module=sw&period=&begin_date=1928-10-01&end_date=2023-09-20*