The Water Rights Analysis Package (WRAP), a generalized model for simulating river basin management, is a monthly time step model used to evaluate reliabilities in supplying permitted water rights, with alternative reservoir/river system management strategies, based on hydrologic period-of-record simulation. The model was applied in a study of the Brazos River Basin, focusing on a system of 12 reservoirs owned by the Brazos River Authority and Corps of Engineers. The impact of natural salt contamination on water supply reliabilities was a major concern. The simulation study included identification and examination of key issues and considerations in river basin management and associated water availability modeling. This paper illustrates the numerous complexities of both modeling and administering a water rights system.
