SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING
SPRING 2011
M.S. COMPREHENSIVE EXAM:   WATER RESOURCES (Mendez)

Name: _____________________ Red ID No. ________________ Grade: _______


Instructions: 2 hours. Closed book, closed notes. Write a 300-word statement per question. Use engineering paper. Answer only four (4) questions. When you are finished, staple your work in sequence, and return this sheet with your work.

  1. Describe the runoff curve number method, and explain why it should not be used for modeling baseflow.

  2. Describe the impact of anthropogenic changes of albedo on water resources.

  3. Describe the relationship between surface water and groundwater. What percentage of groundwater completely avoids the surface waters?

  4. Describe the importance of geomorphology on hydrology. Give an example relating this importance to the experience of the Parana-Paraguay Waterway Project in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso.

  5. Describe the importance of denitrification in the nitrogen cycle, and how it affects the biogeochemical cycle in seasonal wetlands.