Comparison of generic simulation models for water resource systems

Particularly in water resource systems that frequently experience severe drought events, generic simulation models provide useful information for the definition of drought mitigation measures. Among them, AQUATOOL (Valencia Polytechnic University), MODSIM (Colorado State University), RIBASIM (DELTARES), WARGI-SIM (University of Cagliari) and WEAP (Stockholm Environmental Institute) are here considered for the preliminary analysis of alternative plans and policies. This paper is about modelling in practice more than in theory: the emphasis is on the application of these simulation models to a multireservoir and multiuse water system in Southern Italy where frequent droughts in the last two decades have required the adoption of unsustainable temporary user-supply restrictions. While each model has its own characteristics, the proposed application comparison does not identify all the features of each model, but rather gives general information on the identification and evaluation of operating policies with the aid of these simulation models.