Delta Game
This summer, Alex and I volunteered at the Menlo Park USGS (United States Geological Survey) campus to work on a prototype Flash Game. The scientists at USGS were interested in using the medium of a “serious game” to educate decision-makers about the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. This region supplies drinking water to two out of every three Californians, and is a thriving agricultural area. In addition, the cities of Stockton, Antioch, and Tracy (among others) are in the region, so making good decisions about the Delta’s future is of great importance to a large number of people. Our serious game, jokingly nicknamed “Delta Skelta,” tries to emulate the complexity of the region, letting Delta residents realize what is at stake and explore possible futures for this vulnerable area.
What’s at stake?
The Delta region has a very sensitive ecosystem, and is home to several endangered species, the most prominent of which is the Delta Smelt. Recently, farmers were ordered to shut down their pumps to allow these smelt to swim past without being sucked in and killed.
In addition to harboring endangered species, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta provides drinking water to roughly two out of every three Californians. Human-driven factors, such as salinity, agricultural runoff, and flood debris, as well as naturally occurring droughts, all affect the water quality in the Delta, and thus the availability of export water.
Another important group in the Delta is the farmers. Water availability during the growing season is crucial for the survival of their crops, so they are reluctant to let water level regulations and smelt get in their way. The cities surrounding the Delta also have a large stake in the region. Stockton, Tracy, and Antioch, among others, are directly in the Delta, with Sacramento not too far away.
Alex and I modeled these advocacy groups through “indicators,” allowing each indicator to fluctuate based upon what that group felt was important. For farmers, for instance, water availability was most important, whereas ecological regions preferred that nearby farms and cities did not pollute too much.
Levees
Perhaps the most important part of the Delta game is learning how vulnerable the levee system surrounding the Delta is. The amount of water flowing through the Delta changes wildly season-to-season and year-to-year, so levees must be built to withstand the difference in water levels. In addition, the Delta lies in a high-risk seismic zone; a strong earthquake can “liquidize” a levee with its vibrations.
Another issue with levees in the Delta is subsidence. This is especially prevalent in the central Delta, where islands are sometimes beneath the water table and require constant pumping to remain dry. Because the land behind the levees is sinking (at a rate of a couple inches a year), levees must be built higher and stronger—to continue to be effective, levees must grow proportional to the square of the height of the water. The USGS has published a paper on this subject that provides possible solutions for the issue.
The levee system’s age is also a key concern. Over time, small cracks and air pockets can develop in a levee, which—in the event of a particularly wet year—can cause the levee to collapse. Since inspecting the levee system for these small fissures is expensive, no hard data is available to scientists and engineers about the quality of the levees. In the Delta game, Alex and I made inspecting and improving levees a key part of the game play to reflect the importance of the issue.
Changing Climate Conditions
Changing global climate conditions, especially sea level rise, pose a significant threat to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Scientists are very confident that some sea-level rise will occur, but are unsure about how much. In the game, we used estimates produced by different research agencies to randomly model how much the sea level will change. Higher sea levels not only translate into a higher flood risk for people living in the lower Delta, but an increased salinity as well, making irrigating these farms very difficult.
Since the causes of this problem are largely outside of the scope of the Delta, scientists must come up with creative solutions if the Delta is to remain fresh. One solution (that we did not have time to duplicate in our game) is to build a bypass channel from the upper Sacramento directly to the Delta’s mouth to keep the salt water out. Another solution involves building a sea wall to physically separate the water bodies.
These solutions are not ideal for indigenous species such as the Delta smelt. A constantly-moving salt-water gradient is essential for their life cycle, and keeping the Delta fresh, while beneficial for farmers, would be devastating for these fish. Unfortunately, there are few fish-friendly futures for the Delta (evacuating the region completely, for instance, is not an option), so a happy medium must be established.
Conclusion
Both Alex and I had a lot of fun writing this game. Unfortunately the game lacks polish—you probably won’t have as much fun playing it as we had writing it. There are many bugs (many of which we know about), but we have no plans for fixing them. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about the game—we’d be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.
Play Delta Skelta!