Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations
Reservoir operations must balance water supply, flood protection, and environmental needs under uncertain future inflows. Our research develops operating policies that use weather and streamflow forecasts to improve these tradeoffs. We combine simulation and multi-objective optimization with model predictive control, test policy robustness to forecast errors and extreme events, and identify how reservoir characteristics and forecast lead times determine the benefits of forecast-informed operations.
Selected papers: Taylor et al. (2026), Chen et al. (2026), Brodeur et al. (2025)
Adaptive Water Resources Planning
Water infrastructure and operating policies must adapt to changing climate, land use, and water demand. Our research develops adaptive planning methods that use new observations to guide when and how management strategies should change. We identify indicators that reveal emerging vulnerabilities, design thresholds that trigger adaptation, and evaluate how the timing and frequency of policy updates affect performance across uncertain futures.
Selected papers: Sunkara et al. (2026), Zaniolo et al. (2026), Chen and Herman (2024)
Dynamics of Human-Environmental Systems
Water resources systems are shaped by feedbacks among hydrology, infrastructure, and human decisions. Our research develops data-driven and conceptual models of these coupled dynamics to understand how changes in climate, resource use, and management affect system performance, stability, and resilience.
Selected papers: Chen and Herman (2026), Molla et al. (2025), Mautner and Herman (2024)