Investigates the recent, unexplained increase in baseflow gains in the Blackfoot–Minidoka reach of the Snake River, a key indicator of ESPA aquifer health, and evaluates mechanisms that could be replicated to accelerate aquifer recovery under the 2024 Mitigation Agreement.

This project is developing approaches to evaluate variability in gains to the Blackfoot-Minidoka reach. This effort requires integration of interannual variability of surface and groundwater entering the ESPA from the tributary basins as well as groundwater flow through the ESPA.