Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Anthropogenic Land-Use Change In The North American Tall Grass-Short Grass Transition And Modification Of Near-Surface Hydrologic Cycle, Rezaul Mamood, Kenneth Hubbard

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

During the 19th and 20th centuries, the landscape of the North American Great Plains was rapidly modified from natural grasslands to agricultural farmlands. These changes affected much of the continent with potential impacts in grasslands equal to deforestation elsewhere. Therefore, the resulting impacts on weather and climate should be studied. In this study, a soil water balance model is applied for 3 land uses at 3 locations. These locations are representative of the east to west declining precipitation gradient of the Great Plains. It was found, in McCook, Nebraska, for example, that annual total evapotranspiration for irrigated maize is 36% …