Levi Brekke, P.E.
Environmental Engineering Program
Civil & Environmental Engineering Department
University of California, Berkeley
602 Davis Hall, MC 1710
Berkeley, CA 94720-1710
levi@uclink.berkeley.edu
(510)642-3245
fax: (510)643-4307

Research Interests:

My research relates to the areas of surface water hydrology, climatology, decision analysis, and water resource systems operations. 

Education:

• 8/00-present:  UC-Berkeley, Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Environmental Engineering Ph.D. Program.  Transferred from UCLA, Fall 2000.

• 9/98-7/00:  UCLA, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Water Resources Ph.D. Program.  Chancellor’s Fellow. 

• 9/94-6/95:  Stanford University.  M.S. Environmental Science and Engineering (6/95).  National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow.

• 8/90-5/94:  The University of Iowa.  B.S.E. Civil Engineering with Honors and Highest Distinction (5/94).

Current Research:

I am studying the risk and uncertainty of using ocean and atmospheric monitoring information to guide California reservoir operations.  This research has several phases: (1) an analysis of how various sources of Pacific-region ocean and atmospheric monitoring data can be consolidated and related to reservoir inflow in California’s Central Valley Basin, (2) development of improved Central Valley water supply forecast models using this remote climatic information, (3) studies on Central Valley’s water resource system operations guided by this remote climatic information with focus on impacts to decision-making outcomes and risk that are reliant on water supply forecast information.  On another project, I am collaborating with researchers at the UC-Berkeley/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Hydroclimate Impacts Research Group to study climate change impacts on reservoir operations, water supply, and water quality in California’s San Joaquin River Basin.

Registrations and Affliliations:

Licensed Professional Engineer, Civil, State of California, #C 056453

American Water Works Association

American Geophysical Union

California Water and Environmental Modeling Forum

Honors:

1998 University of California Chancellor’s Fellow

1994 National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow

1994 Collegiate Scholar, The University of Iowa

Tau Beta Pi, Iowa Beta, National Engineering Honorary

    Co-Chairman, planning committee for 1994 Symposium on Technology Recording Secretary, 1994.

Publications and Proceedings:

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, “Model Integration for Climate Change Impact Analysis in the San Joaquin Basin, California,”  Suppl. to Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, v81(48), November 28, 2000.

• Brekke, L., M. Larsen, M. Ausburn, and L. Takaichi, “Suburban Water Demand Modeling using Stepwise Regression,” Journal of American Water Works Association, Accepted September 2001, in press. 

• Quinn, N.W., N.L. Miller, J.A. Dracup, L.D. Brekke, and L.F. Grober, "An integrated modeling system for  environmental impact analysis of climate variability and extreme weather events in California," Workshop Symposium on Integration in Environmental Information Systems, Zell am See, Austria, June, 2000.  (conference proceedings)

• Quinn N.W.T., N.L. Miller, J.A. Dracup, L. Breeke, L. Grober.  "An integrated modeling system for environmental impact analysis of climate variability and extreme weather events in California."  Environmental Software Systems.  Environmental Information and Decision Support.  International Federation for Information Processing TC5 WG5.11.  Edited by: Ralf Denzer, David A. Swayne, Martin Purvis and Gerald Schimak.  Publisher: Kluwer Academic Publishers, Massachusetts, 2000.

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, W.C. Cottingame, D.I. Cooper, J.C-Y. Kao, "Validation of a Lidar Wind-field Algorithm," Supple. To Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, v80(46), November 16, 1999.

Presentations:

• Brekke, L.D., “Linkages between Pacific-region climatic conditions and seasonal to annual Northern California reservoir inflow,”  Environmental Engineering PhD Seminar Series, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, April 2002.  (seminar)

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, “Linkages between Mid-Latitude Pacific Ocean/Atmosphere Climatic Conditions and Seasonal/Annual Northern California Streamflow,” Hydrology Days, Fort Collins, CO, April 2002.  (talk)

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, “Framework for Assessing the Risk of using Remote-Climate-Based Streamflow Forecasts in California Reservoir Operations,” 19^th Annual Paclim Conference, Pacific Grove, CA, March 2002.  (poster)

• Brekke, L.D., H. Hidalgo, N.W.T. Quinn, J.A. Dracup, N.L. Miller, et al. “Climate Change Impacts on the Water Supply and Water Quality of the San Joaquin River Basin,” Asilomar 2002, Pacific Grove, CA, February 2002. (talk)

• Brekke, L.D., H. Hidalgo, N.W.T. Quinn, J.A. Dracup, and R. Howitt. “Vulnerability Assessment of the San Joaquin Basin Water Supply, Rural Economy, and Ecological Resources due to Climate Change and Variability,” 2001 STAR Global Change Progress Review for 1999 and 2000 Grant Recipients, January 15-16, 2002, Washington, DC. (poster)

• Dracup, J.A., R. Howitt, and L. Brekke. “Vulnerability Assessment of the San Joaquin Basin Water Supply, Rural Economy, and Ecological Resources due to Climate Change and Variability,” 2001 STAR Global Change Progress Review for 1999 and 2000 Grant Recipients, January 15-16, 2002, Washington, DC. (talk)

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, “Using North Pacific Sea Surface Temperature and Geopotential Height Data to forecast Northern California Reservoir Inflow,” Atmospheric Science Symposium, Berkeley Atmospheric Sciences Center, November 2001, University of California Berkeley, CA. (poster)

• Brekke, L.D., “Climate Change Impacts on San Joaquin Basin Water Supply,”  Environmental Engineering PhD Seminar Series, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, March 2001.  (seminar)

• Brekke, L.D., “Application of the ECOSIM-W Model for Assessing Water Supply Impacts,”  Asilomar 2001, Pacific Grove, CA, February 2001.  (talk)

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, “Model Integration for Climate Change Impact Analysis in the San Joaquin Basin, California,”  AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, CA, December 2000.  (poster)

• Brekke, L.D., “Using MMS & OUI for Climate Change Impact Analysis in San Joaquin Basin, California,” San Francisco Bay Delta Modeling Forum Workshop, Berkeley, CA, August 2000.  (talk)

• Brekke, L.D., J.A. Dracup, W.C. Cottingame, D.I. Cooper, J.C-Y. Kao, “Validation of a Lidar Wind-field Algorithm,” AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, CA, December 1999.  (poster)

Professional Experience:

• KENNEDY/JENKS CONSULTANTS, Senior Staff Engineer, (Full-Time, January 1997 to August 1998, Federal Way, WA; Part-Time, January 1999 to June 2000, Ventura, CA).  Responsibilities:  water/wastewater treatment engineering, water resource planning.  Highlights:  Served as lead project engineer on $350,000 Comprehensive Water System Plan for 7^th largest water district in Washington, Lakehaven Utility District.  Developed long-range drought forecasting methodology for California coastal community based on El Niño/Southern Oscillation conditions.

• CAROLLO ENGINEERS, Engineer, Walnut Creek, CA, (July 1995 to August 1996).  Responsibilities: wastewater treatment engineering.  Highlight:  Designed 5-million gallon per day activated-sludge system for a $13.8 million secondary treatment plant upgrade in El Dorado Hills, CA. 

• SUMMER INSTITUTE FOR CREATIVE ENGINEERING AND INVENTIVENESS, Project Course Instructor, Iowa City, IA, (Summer 1994).  Responsibilities:  organize and teach problem-solving course to gifted high-school seniors.

• NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, Imaging Analyst and Software Developer (visiting student), Greenbelt, MD, (Summer, 1993).  Responsibilities:  design software for browsing satellite data and in support of NASA’s Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission.