Reclamation Information Sharing Environment (RISE)

The Colorado River Indian Tribes, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Bureau of Reclamation partnered on this project to research and test computer software methods for use on the Colorado River Irrigation Project. The goal was to better integrate and simplify current processes to improve water ordering, accounting, and end user experience in terms of accuracy, transparency, accessibility and reliability. Software solutions from various vendors were evaluated, and WISKI, an environmental data management solution provided by Kisters, was selected for a five-month pilot test. Data centralized in WISKI and available in the web portal provided user-friendly access to key information that could eventually support water management discussions between the Colorado River Indian Tribes, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Bureau of Reclamation. The project showed that software solutions are available to enhance efficiency and accuracy, as historical and current data from different sources can be systematically used in automated processes for water ordering and accounting, which can be easily tested and iteratively updated. The lessons learned from this project can benefit other multi-stakeholder water management operations and highlight the importance of addressing operational challenges when implementing technical solutions like data management software.