Water quality impacts from agricultural drainage of peat soils in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta

Agricultural drainage from peat soils in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta impacts the water supply exported by the State Water Project (SWP) and Central Valley Project (CVP) pumping plants A monthly planning model (DeltaDWQ) was developed that links the agricultural diversion and drainage for the Delta peat soils with the river inflows and transport in the Delta channels. This model accounts for the water budget, salinity budget, and dissolved organic carbon budget for the agricultural soils and the Delta channels to provide an integrated evaluation of the effects of agricultural drainage on export water quality. This model was used for impact assessment of the proposed Delta Wetlands project (JSA 1995) that would convert two Delta agricultural islands to reservoirs.