Hydrology Commons^™

Pedology At Four Representative Sites Of Southern Highland Zone Of Tanzania, Johnson Godlove Mtama, Balthazar Michael Msanya, Charles Lee Burras

Agronomy Publications

To study the soils of Southern Highland Zone of Tanzania, four representative pedons of some landscapes were characterized. Their names and identifiers are Seatondale, Mbimba, Inyala, and Uyole, respectively TzSea 01, TzMb 02, TzIny 03, and TzUy04. The pedons were formed from the weathering of among other materials, colluvial igneous rocks, alluvium, eluvial soils, laterite, lacustrine sands and silts, andesite, pumice, aeolian deposits, and metamorphic rocks including coarse grained and strongly foliated biotite gneisses. Twenty soil samples were taken for laboratory characterization. In addition to classical horizon by horizon descriptions and laboratory analyses, 12 core samples were taken for soil-water ...

County-Wide Assessment Of Irrigation Expansion On Air Temperature, Humidity And Evapotranspiration Rates In Nebraska, 1979-2015, Jozsef Szilagyi

Conservation and Survey Division

Total irrigated land area has been expanding in Nebraska over the last 40 years, propelling the state into a leading position within the US in terms of irrigated acreages. Typically, those counties which display the largest degree of irrigation development had a significant portion of their land area already irrigated in 1978. Large-scale irrigation in Nebraska affects its atmospheric environment. During the typical irrigation season of May to August, counties with the largest rate of irrigation expansion have cooled by about 0.2 – 0.3 °F per decade in the summer months of June, July and August, while counties with ...

Understanding The 2011 Upper Missouri River Basin Floods In The Context Of A Changing Climate, Andrew Badger, Ben Livneh, Martin P. Hoerling, Jon K. Eischeid

University Libraries Open Access Fund Supported Publications

Study Region: Upper Missouri River Basin.

Study Focus: The semi-arid Upper Missouri River Basin (UMRB) has experienced notable vola- tility in high and low streamflow extremes in recent decades, punctuated by the record 2011 flood. This study provides a new perspective into the relative importance of precipitation and antecedent moisture conditions in driving extreme streamflow. Ensemble streamflow simulations demonstrate that precipitation is largely the dominant driver for high streamflows. Applying the observed atmospheric forcing in 2011 with initial conditions of antecedent hydrologic conditions from 64 historic years consistently produces large streamflow events exceeding the 85th per- centile of historical peak ...

Development And Application Of The Heat Pulse Method For Soil Physical Measurements, Hailong He, Miles F. Dyck, Robert Horton, Tusheng Ren, Keith L. Bristow, Jialong Lv, Bingcheng Si

Agronomy Publications

Accurate and continuous measurements of soil thermal and hydraulic propertiesare required for environmental, Earth and planetary science, and engineering applications, but they are not practicallyobtained by steady-state methods. The heat pulse (HP) method is a transient method for determinationof soil thermal properties and a wide range of other physical properties in laboratory and field conditions. The HP method is based on the line-heat source solution of the radial heat flow equation. This literature review begins with a discussion of the evolution of the HP method and related applications, followed by the principal theories, data interpretation methods and their differences. Important ...

Estimating The Permanent Loss Of Groundwater Storage In The Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, Ryan G. Smith, Rosemary Knight, J. Chen, J. A. Reeves, H. A. Zebker, T. Farr, Z. Liu

Ryan G. Smith

In the San Joaquin Valley, California, recent droughts starting in 2007 have increased the pumping of groundwater, leading to widespread subsidence. In the southern portion of the San Joaquin Valley, vertical subsidence as high as 85 cm has been observed between June 2007 and December 2010 using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR). This study seeks to map regions where inelastic (not recoverable) deformation occurred during the study period, resulting in permanent compaction and loss of groundwater storage. We estimated the amount of permanent compaction by incorporating multiple data sets: the total deformation derived from InSAR, estimated skeletal-specific storage and hydraulic ...

Overpumping Leads To California Groundwater Arsenic Threat, Ryan G. Smith, Rosemary Knight, Scott Fendorf

Ryan G. Smith

Water resources are being challenged to meet domestic, agricultural, and industrial needs. To complement finite surface water supplies that are being stressed by changes in precipitation and increased demand, groundwater is increasingly being used. Sustaining groundwater use requires considering both water quantity and quality. A unique challenge for groundwater use, as compared with surface water, is the presence of naturally occurring contaminants within aquifer sediments, which can enter the water supply. Here we find that recent groundwater pumping, observed through land subsidence, results in an increase in aquifer arsenic concentrations in the San Joaquin Valley of California. By comparison, historic ...

Estimating Watershed Residence Times In Artificially-Drained Landscapes And Relation To Nutrient Concentrations, Emma Beck, Lisa Welp, Alexandra L. Meyer

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Nutrient runoff from agricultural lands feeds harmful algae blooms that create a variety of problems in freshwater ecosystems. In order to reduce the effects of this nutrient runoff, Best Management Practices (BMPs) are being put in place in agricultural lands. Most of these BMPs focus on slowing down the flow of water through the watershed to give nutrient concentrations time to deplete before the water flows to the stream or river. However, the effectiveness of these BMPs are highly unknown and the process of monitoring nutrient runoff is often complex and costly. The data in this study consists of 7 ...

Remote Sensing Using I-Band And S-Band Signals Of Opportunity, Kadir Efecik, Benjamin R. Nold, James L. Garrison

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Measurement of soil moisture, especially the root zone soil moisture, is important in agriculture, meteorology, and hydrology. Root zone soil moisture is concerned with the first meter down the soil. Active and passive remote sensing methods used today utilizing L-band(1-2GHz) are physically limited to a sensing depth of about 5 cm or less. To remotely sense the soil moisture in the deeper parts of the soil, the frequency should be lowered. Lower frequencies cannot be used in active spaceborne instruments because of their need for larger antennas, radio frequency interference (RFI), and frequency spectrum allocations. Ground-based passive remote sensing ...

Spatial Response Of Near-Surface Soil Water Contents To Newly Imposed Soil Management, Aaron L. M. Daigh, Upasana Ghosh, Jodi Dejong-Hughes, Robert Horton

Agronomy Publications

Near-surface soil water content (SWC) and its spatial patterns are important for landscape hydrological responses to precipitation as well as our ability to remotely sense and model such responses. Our objective was to measure and evaluate near-surface SWC semivariograms of agricultural fields with newly imposed (i.e., <2 yr) side-by-side soil and residue management practices (i.e., reduced tillage systems and cover crops) in the midwestern United States. Range parameters were consistently smaller when cover crops were planted (20–25 m less) and tillage area and/or intensity was reduced (12–27 m less) compared with no cover crop and chisel plowing, respectively, except in a clayey Vertisol. Nugget and sill parameters did not have consistent trends across soil management practices or sites. These data, although brief and preliminary in scope, provide clear proof of concept that spatial pattern shifts can be clearly detected in newly imposed soil-management systems even though differences in SWC means are not always evident.

A Comparison Of Vnir And Mir Spectroscopy For Predicting Various Soil Properties, Joshua R. Gates

Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources

Soil plays an important role in our daily lives, namely producing food, cleaning water and storing carbon. The ability to rapidly and cost-effectively quantify the various components of soils can help us understand and better manage this important resource. This study aims to compare the ability of visible near-infrared (VNIR) spectroscopy and mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy to quickly and accurately predict various important soil properties (electrical conductivity, soil pH, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable cations, phosphorus, carbon, beta-glucosidase enzyme activity and nitrogen). Prediction models were developed using partial least squares regression (PLSR) techniques. Three different calibration sampling methods were tested along with ...

Boundary Spanners And Trust Development Between Stakeholders In Integrated Water Resource Management: A Mixed Methods Study, Jodi L. Delozier

Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources

Natural resource issues are inherently complex, even more so are those that involve the management of water. Because watersheds tend to cross multiple jurisdictional and geographical boundaries, a diverse set of stakeholders are needed to develop appropriate and sustainable management policy. This research sheds light on the importance of boundary spanners assisting in the development of trust between stakeholders in integrated water resource management (IWRM). Previous literature has explored the advantages to boundary spanning leadership in business practice, emergency management, university and community management as well as fish and wildlife management, but has failed to address the area of integrated ...

Investigations Of The Potential For Irrigated Agriculture On The Bonaparte Plains: Bore Completion Report, D L. Bennett

Resource management technical reports

Drilling programs were undertaken in 2013 and 2016 by the former Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia and in 2017 by DPIRD, at 10 sites in the Bonaparte Plains area, north of Kununurra in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia (WA).

These drilling programs were a component of resource availability and risk investigations conducted to determine the potential for developing irrigated agriculture on 30 000 hectares (ha) of Cockatoo Sands — free-draining loamy soils that have the potential to support crops in the wet and dry seasons. There was limited hydrogeological information available at a suitable scale for the ...

Comparative Microbial Community Dynamics In A Karst Aquifer System And Proximal Surface Stream In Northwest Arkansas, Josue Rodriguez

Theses and Dissertations

Northwest Arkansas has well-developed karst systems, with numerous sinking streams and springs. Karst conduits make it easy for contaminants to enter groundwater systems, degrading the water quality and destroying fragile karst ecosystems. With the increase of urbanization, potential threats in the form of fecal contamination may prove to be more of a problem. The purpose of this research is to compare the difference between microbial communities within two different settings, a karst aquifer and a surface stream. The microbial communities within Blowing Spring Cave and Little Sugar Creek were detected and identified in water and sediment samples. Samples were also ...

Flow Regime Influences On Stream And Riparian Soil Carbon Dynamics In The Ozark Highlands And Boston Mountains Of Arkansas, Allyn Dodd

Theses and Dissertations

The natural flow regime exerts primacy over lotic ecosystem patterns and processes. However, little work has examined the influence of flow regime on instream and riparian carbon (C) dynamics in minimally-impacted, temperate forested systems. To date, most research efforts have focused on characterizing C movement and transformations across biomes and land use categories; however, flow regime represents an overlooked, finer level of detail that may drive differences in ecosystem function. My dissertation objective was to measure C fixation and movement within and across multiple environmental spheres (e.g. within stream channels, between stream surfaces and the atmosphere, and from riparian ...

From Snow To Flow: Exploring Relationships Between Snotel Ablation Curves And Peak Streamflow Timing, Kara Jane Ferguson

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Predictions of peak streamflow timing in snow-dominated river systems are essential for proper water management and recreational availability. This study evaluates historic snow and streamflow data from 14 river basins throughout Idaho to investigate the relationship between snowmelt timing at SNOw TELemetry (SNOTEL) sites and peak streamflow within each basin. The goal is to provide a simple operational tool that estimates the probability of peak streamflow occurring within a certain number of days as ablation progresses from 0 to 100% melted. For individual basins we evaluate meltout levels in increments of 10% from each SNOTEL site and use a probabilistic ...

Exploring The Role Of Deforestation On Regional Hydroclimate In Southeast Africa: An Approach Fusing Models And Data, Megan Maksimowicz

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Land cover acts as the gatekeeper to incoming and outgoing energy and water fluxes at the land surface, partitioning energy and water in accordance with the vegetation type and in response to atmospheric forcings. As Land Surface Models become more complex and more capable of simulating the coupled dynamics of the land-atmosphere system in greater spatial detail, the need for accurate representation of spatial distribution of vegetation types and their dynamics through time grows.

As humans modify land cover, there are complex dynamics at play between the vegetation, the surface energy balance and the cycling of water. The resultant hydroclimatic ...

Spatial And Temporal Trends Of Mining-Related Lead-Zinc Sediment Contamination, Galena River Watershed, Sw Wisconsin-Nw Illinois, Dylan Alexander King

MSU Graduate Theses

Alluvial sediments within the Galena River Watershed were severely contaminated with heavy metals by historical zinc (Zn) and lead (Pb) mining operations during the early 1800s until 1979. Since the mines closed, there have been efforts to remediate on-site mine waste. However, the effectiveness of these efforts to reduce metal concentrations in stream sediments is unknown. This study compares present-day (2017) contamination trends in the Galena River Watershed to trends reported 25 years ago. A total of 415 sediment/soil samples were collected and analyzed using X-ray florescence spectrometry to determine sediment metal concentrations. The highest concentrations of zinc measured ...

Nutrient Transport And Storage In A Karst Spring-Reservoir System During Baseflow, Missouri Ozarks, Heather A. Moule

MSU Graduate Theses

Urban and agricultural land uses are important sources of nitrogen and phosphorus which, if in excess, can cause eutrophication in lakes and rivers. There have been few studies of nutrient transport and storage in karst spring and reservoir connected stream systems draining the Missouri Ozarks. This study aims to link the baseflow nutrient contributions of Sanders Spring to downstream reservoir outflow and the Headwaters South Dry Sac River Watershed in Springfield, Missouri. Water samples were collected seasonally and analyzed for total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and several other water quality parameters. Discharge was also monitored to calculate water and ...

Assessment Of Snow Atmosphere Forcing During Central Idaho Atmospheric Rivers, William Rudisill

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Atmospheric Rivers (AR) are globally occuring weather features and the primary mechanism through which water vapor moves from the tropics and subtropics towards the mid-latitudes, doing so at rates comparable to the world’s largest terrestrial rivers. AR that encounter mountains often cause extreme precipitation in the form of rain and snow, high winds, and flooding in many watersheds. They account for as much as 20-30% of cool season precipitation in the central Idaho Mountains. In the Northern Hemisphere, seasonal snow cover during Winter and Spring months is the most variable land surface component in space and time, and acts ...

Evaporation Depth Controls The Relationship Between Soil Water Mobility And Soil Water Isotopic Composition, John Byars Shuler

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Recent studies of plant water uptake assume that soil water isotopic composition can be used to infer soil water mobility. However, the strength of the relationship between mobility and isotopic composition remains poorly constrained. In addition, many ecohydrologic investigations are restricted by low sampling frequencies and insufficient soil moisture and matric potential data to support assumptions of soil water mobility. We sampled bulk soil water every 14 to 21 days in hillslope and riparian profiles during the 2016 and 2017 growing seasons in a semi-arid watershed outside Boise, ID. We collected twig samples of four tree and shrub species concurrently ...