ROLE OF HYDROLOGY

AND HYDRAULICS IN
WATER RESOURCES
ENGINEERING
 WATER RESOURCES
- WATER RESOURCEENGINEERING
ENGINEERING INVOLVES PLANNING AND
MANAGEMENT OF VARIOUS CONSTRUCTED FACILITIES .
THE APPLICATIONS OF WATER RESOURCES ENGINEERING
INCLUDES:
• DESIGN OF VARIOUS HYDRAULIC STRUCTURES SUCH AS BREAKWATERS AND
DAMS, SEWAGE CONDUIT.
• MANAGEMENT OF WATERWAYS - FLOOD AND EROSION PROTECTION.
• ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT- THIS INCLUDES PREDICTION OF MIXING
AND THE TRANSPORT OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF POLLUTANTS IN SURFACE
WATER.
• HYDROELECTRIC- POWER DEVELOPMENT.
• IRRIGATION, WATER SUPPLY AND NAVIGATION - IN WHICH WATER IS UTILIZED
FOR BENEFICIAL PURPOSES.
 HYDROLOGY
- IS THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF THE MOVEMENT,
DISTRIBUTION, AND QUALITY OF WATER ON EARTH AND
OTHER PLANETS, INCLUDING THE WATER CYCLE, WATER
RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL WATERSHED
SUSTAINABILITY. 
- IS THE BRANCH OF EARTH SCIENCE WHICH MEANS THE
SCIENCE OF WATER. IT IS THE SCIENCE WHICH DEALS WITH
THE OCCURRENCE, CIRCULATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF
WATER OF THE EARTH AND EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE.
 HYDRAULICS
- BRANCH OF SCIENCE CONCERNED WITH THE PRACTICAL
APPLICATIONS OF FLUIDS, PRIMARILY LIQUIDS, IN MOTION. IT IS
RELATED TO FLUID MECHANICS (Q.V.), WHICH IN LARGE PART PROVIDES
ITS THEORETICAL FOUNDATION. HYDRAULICS DEALS WITH SUCH
MATTERS AS THE FLOW OF LIQUIDS IN PIPES, RIVERS, AND CHANNELS
AND THEIR CONFINEMENT BY DAMS AND TANKS. SOME OF ITS
PRINCIPLES APPLY ALSO TO GASES, USUALLY IN CASES IN WHICH
VARIATIONS IN DENSITY ARE RELATIVELY SMALL. CONSEQUENTLY, THE
SCOPE OF HYDRAULICS EXTENDS TO SUCH MECHANICAL DEVICES AS
FANS AND GAS TURBINES AND TO PNEUMATIC CONTROL SYSTEMS.
 WHAT IS THE ROLE OF
HYDROLOGY AND
HYDRAULICS IN WATER
RESOURCE ENGINEERING?
ROLES OF HYDROLOGY AND HYDRAULICS:
• RAINFALL-RUNOFF ANALYSIS  
• WATERSHED MODELING AND ANALYSES 
• HYDRAULIC ANALYSES 
• HYDRAULIC DESIGN OF FLOOD PROTECTION CHANNELS 
• OVERLAND FLOOD ROUTING 
• FEMA FLOODPLAIN MAPPING 
• FEMA LEVEE CERTIFICATION AND RE-CERTIFICATION 
• WATER AVAILABILITY FORECASTS 
• WATER RESOURCES ENGINEERING IS THE QUANTITATIVE STUDY OF THE
HYDROLOGIC CYCLE -- THE DISTRIBUTION AND CIRCULATION OF WATER
LINKING THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE, LAND AND OCEANS. SURFACE RUNOFF
IS MEASURED AS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PRECIPITATION AND
ABSTRACTIONS, SUCH AS INFILTRATION (WHICH REPLENISHES
GROUNDWATER FLOW), SURFACE STORAGE AND EVAPORATION.
APPLICATIONS INCLUDE THE MANAGEMENT OF THE URBAN WATER SUPPLY,
THE DESIGN OF URBAN STORM-SEWER SYSTEMS, AND FLOOD FORECASTING.
• HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING CONSISTS OF THE APPLICATION OF FLUID
MECHANICS TO WATER FLOWING IN AN ISOLATED ENVIRONMENT (PIPE,
PUMP) OR IN AN OPEN CHANNEL (RIVER, LAKE, OCEAN). CIVIL ENGINEERS
ARE PRIMARILY CONCERNED WITH OPEN CHANNEL FLOW, WHICH IS
GOVERNED BY THE INTERDEPENDENT INTERACTION BETWEEN THE WATER
AND THE CHANNEL.
• APPLICATIONS INCLUDE THE DESIGN OF HYDRAULIC
STRUCTURES, SUCH AS SEWAGE CONDUITS, DAMS AND
BREAKWATERS, THE MANAGEMENT OF WATERWAYS, SUCH AS
EROSION PROTECTION AND FLOOD PROTECTION, AND
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, SUCH AS PREDICTION OF THE
MIXING AND TRANSPORT OF POLLUTANTS IN SURFACE WATER.
HYDROELECTRIC-POWER DEVELOPMENT, WATER SUPPLY,
IRRIGATION AND NAVIGATION ARE SOME FAMILIAR
APPLICATIONS OF WATER RESOURCES ENGINEERING INVOLVING
THE UTILIZATION OF WATER FOR BENEFICIAL PURPOSES. MORE
RECENTLY, CONCERN FOR PRESERVING OUR NATURAL
ENVIRONMENT AND MEETING THE NEEDS OF DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES HAS INCREASED THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER
RESOURCES ENGINEERING.
• THE STUDY OF WATER FLOW, INCLUDING ITS PROPERTIES AND
BEHAVIOR, ENTAILS THE APPLICATION OF HYDROLOGIC AND
HYDRAULIC PRINCIPLES AND METHODS.  HYDROLOGIC ANALYSES ARE
PERFORMED TO QUANTIFY THE VOLUMETRIC FLOW RATE OF WATER
DRAINING FROM A WATERSHED (I.E., DRAINAGE AREA) OVER TIME.
 THE AMOUNT OF WATER THAT FLOWS FROM A WATERSHED DEPENDS
ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WATERSHED (E.G., SIZE, LAND
COVER, ANTECEDENT MOISTURE, AND STEEPNESS) AND THE
PRESENCE OF WATER (E.G., THE INTENSITY AND DURATION OF A
PRECIPITATION EVENT, RATE OF SNOWMELT, OR REGULATION FROM A
DAM).  HYDRAULIC ANALYSES ARE PERFORMED TO DETERMINE THE
DEPTH OF FLOW, FLOW VELOCITY, AND FORCES FROM FLOWING
WATER ON A SURFACE OR AT HYDRAULIC STRUCTURES.  THESE
STUDIES ARE IMPORTANT COMPONENTS IN THE HYDRAULIC DESIGN
AND ANALYSIS OF MANY STRUCTURES.