1
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Guo Y, Boughton EH, Bohlman S, Bernacchi C, Bohlen PJ, Boughton R, DeLucia E, Fauth JE, Gomez-Casanovas N, Jenkins DG, Lollis G, Miller RS, Quintana-Ascencio PF, Sonnier G, Sparks J, Swain HM, Qiu J. Grassland intensification effects cascade to alter multifunctionality of wetlands within metaecosystems. Nat Commun 2023; 14:8267. [PMID: 38092756 PMCID: PMC10719369 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44104-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Sustainable agricultural intensification could improve ecosystem service multifunctionality, yet empirical evidence remains tenuous, especially regarding consequences for spatially coupled ecosystems connected by flows across ecosystem boundaries (i.e., metaecosystems). Here we aim to understand the effects of land-use intensification on multiple ecosystem services of spatially connected grasslands and wetlands, where management practices were applied to grasslands but not directly imposed to wetlands. We synthesize long-term datasets encompassing 53 physical, chemical, and biological indicators, comprising >11,000 field measurements. Our results reveal that intensification promotes high-quality forage and livestock production in both grasslands and wetlands, but at the expense of water quality regulation, methane mitigation, non-native species invasion resistance, and biodiversity. Land-use intensification weakens relationships among ecosystem services. The effects on grasslands cascade to alter multifunctionality of embedded natural wetlands within the metaecosystems to a similar extent. These results highlight the importance of considering spatial flows of resources and organisms when studying land-use intensification effects on metaecosystems as well as when designing grassland and wetland management practices to improve landscape multifunctionality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuxi Guo
- School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, 3205 College Ave, Davie, FL, USA
| | - Elizabeth H Boughton
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, 300 Buck Island Ranch Road, Lake Placid, FL, USA.
| | - Stephanie Bohlman
- School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Carl Bernacchi
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, ARS Global Change and Photosynthesis Research Unit, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - Patrick J Bohlen
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Raoul Boughton
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, 300 Buck Island Ranch Road, Lake Placid, FL, USA
| | - Evan DeLucia
- Department of Plant Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - John E Fauth
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Nuria Gomez-Casanovas
- Texas A&M AgriLife Research Center, Texas A&M University, Vernon, TX, USA
- Rangeland, Wildlife & Fisheries Management Department, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - David G Jenkins
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Gene Lollis
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, 300 Buck Island Ranch Road, Lake Placid, FL, USA
| | - Ryan S Miller
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, APHIS Veterinary Services, Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | | | - Grégory Sonnier
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, 300 Buck Island Ranch Road, Lake Placid, FL, USA
| | - Jed Sparks
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Hilary M Swain
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, 300 Buck Island Ranch Road, Lake Placid, FL, USA
| | - Jiangxiao Qiu
- School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, University of Florida, 3205 College Ave, Davie, FL, USA.
- School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
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2
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Imdad K, Rihan M, Sahana M, Parween S, Ahmed R, Costache R, Chaudhary A, Tripathi R. Wetland health, water quality, and resident perceptions of declining ecosystem services: a case study of Mount Abu, Rajasthan, India. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023; 30:116617-116643. [PMID: 35854070 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-21902-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2022] [Accepted: 07/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Ecosystem services provided by wetlands are essential for communities living near wetlands, especially in an underdeveloped semi-arid landscape. The land use land cover changes and ecosystem degradation and water quality change over the past few decades have had immense effects on declining wetland ecosystem services. With the degradation, it is exerting superfluous effects on wetland communities including loss of livelihood, and decline in other wetland services like fishing, aquaculture, fuelwood, fodder, and many more. The present study attempts to assess the changing nature of wetland health, water quality, and declining ecosystem services of Mount Abu wetlands in Rajasthan, India. For assessing the change of wetland extent, we have used the remote sensing-based data for preparation of land use land cover change from 1992 to 2020. The water samples have been collected from the wetland, and different biophysical parameters of the water have been tested in the laboratory. A questionnaire-based household survey has been conducted to understand the perception of the wetland communities on the loss of ecosystem services over three decades. Further, a correlation and cluster assessment has been conducted to understand the degradation of wetland health in the selected wetlands. The study results indicated deteriorating conditions of wetland health and declining ecosystem services in the study area over the time periods. The land use land cover change analysis indicated a decrease in the spatial extent of the wetlands in the study area. Wetland communities are being affected due to the degradation of wetland health. The study recommended executing a wetland management plan for long-term conservation and livelihood management for the Mount Abu wetlands and communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kashif Imdad
- Department of Geography, Pandit Prithi Nath PG College (affiliated to Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University), 96/12, Mahatma Gandhi Marg, Kanpur, 208001, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Mohd Rihan
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025, India
| | - Mehebub Sahana
- Department of Geography, School of Environment, Education and Development, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
| | - Samsad Parween
- Department of Geography, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India
| | - Rayees Ahmed
- Department of Geography and Disaster Management, University of Kashmir, Kashmir, India
| | - Romulus Costache
- Department of Civil Engineering, Transilvania University of Brasov, 5, Turnului Str, 500152, Brasov, Romania
- Danube Delta National Institute for Research and Development, 165 Babadag Street, 820112, Tulcea, Romania
| | - Archana Chaudhary
- Department of Geography, Mahabali Mevalal Mahavidyalaya, Tikaula Lakhimpur, UP, India
| | - Richa Tripathi
- Department of Geography, Pandit Prithi Nath PG College (affiliated to Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University), 96/12, Mahatma Gandhi Marg, Kanpur, 208001, Uttar Pradesh, India
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3
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Mengistu SG, Golden HE, Lane CR, Christensen JC, Wine ML, D’Amico E, Prues A, Leibowitz SG, Compton JE, Weber MH, Hill RA. Wetland Flowpaths Mediate Nitrogen and Phosphorus Concentrations across the Upper Mississippi River Basin. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION 2023; 59:1162-1179. [PMID: 38152418 PMCID: PMC10750867 DOI: 10.1111/1752-1688.12885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2023]
Abstract
Eutrophication, harmful algal blooms, and human health impacts are critical environmental challenges resulting from excess nitrogen and phosphorus in surface waters. Yet we have limited information regarding how wetland characteristics mediate water quality across watershed scales. We developed a large, novel set of spatial variables characterizing hydrological flowpaths from wetlands to streams, that is, "wetland hydrological transport variables," to explore how wetlands statistically explain the variability in total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations across the Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB) in the United States. We found that wetland flowpath variables improved landscape-to-aquatic nutrient multilinear regression models (from R2 = 0.89 to 0.91 for TN; R2 = 0.53 to 0.84 for TP) and provided insights into potential processes governing how wetlands influence watershed-scale TN and TP concentrations. Specifically, flowpath variables describing flow-attenuating environments, for example, subsurface transport compared to overland flowpaths, were related to lower TN and TP concentrations. Frequent hydrological connections from wetlands to streams were also linked to low TP concentrations, which likely suggests a nutrient source limitation in some areas of the UMRB. Consideration of wetland flowpaths could inform management and conservation activities designed to reduce nutrient export to downstream waters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samson G. Mengistu
- National Research Council, National Academy of Science @ US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, Ohio USA
| | - Heather E. Golden
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Charles R. Lane
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Jay C. Christensen
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Michael L. Wine
- Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education @ US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, Ohio USA
| | - Ellen D’Amico
- Pegasus Technical Services, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Amy Prues
- Pegasus Technical Services, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Scott G. Leibowitz
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Jana E. Compton
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Marc H. Weber
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Ryan A. Hill
- USEPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
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4
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Sulliván SMP, Gardner RC. US Supreme Court opinion harms watersheds. Science 2023; 381:385. [PMID: 37499038 DOI: 10.1126/science.adj0227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Royal C Gardner
- Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy, Stetson University College of Law, Gulfport, FL, USA
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5
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Lane CR, D’Amico E, Christensen JR, Golden HE, Wu Q, Rajib A. Mapping global non-floodplain wetlands. EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE DATA 2023; 15:2927-2955. [PMID: 37841644 PMCID: PMC10569017 DOI: 10.5194/essd-15-2927-2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
Non-floodplain wetlands - those located outside the floodplains - have emerged as integral components to watershed resilience, contributing hydrologic and biogeochemical functions affecting watershed-scale flooding extent, drought magnitude, and water-quality maintenance. However, the absence of a global dataset of non-floodplain wetlands limits their necessary incorporation into water quality and quantity management decisions and affects wetland-focused wildlife habitat conservation outcomes. We addressed this critical need by developing a publicly available "Global NFW" (Non-Floodplain Wetland) dataset, comprised of a global river-floodplain map at 90 m resolution coupled with a global ensemble wetland map incorporating multiple wetland-focused data layers. The floodplain, wetland, and non-floodplain wetland spatial data developed here were successfully validated within 21 large and heterogenous basins across the conterminous United States. We identified nearly 33 million potential non-floodplain wetlands with an estimated global extent of over 16×106 km2. Non-floodplain wetland pixels comprised 53% of globally identified wetland pixels, meaning the majority of the globe's wetlands likely occur external to river floodplains and coastal habitats. The identified global NFWs were typically small (median 0.039 km2), with a global median size ranging from 0.018-0.138 km2. This novel geospatial Global NFW static dataset advances wetland conservation and resource-management goals while providing a foundation for global non-floodplain wetland functional assessments, facilitating non-floodplain wetland inclusion in hydrological, biogeochemical, and biological model development. The data are freely available through the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Environmental Dataset Gateway (https://gaftp.epa.gov/EPADataCommons/ORD/Global_NonFloodplain_Wetlands/, last access: 24 May 2023) and through https://doi.org/10.23719/1528331 (Lane et al., 2023a).
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles R. Lane
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Ellen D’Amico
- Pegasus Technical Service, Inc. c/o U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Jay R. Christensen
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Heather E. Golden
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Qiusheng Wu
- Department of Geography & Sustainability, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Adnan Rajib
- Hydrology and Hydroinformatics Innovation Lab, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas, USA
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6
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Leibowitz SG, Hill RA, Creed IF, Compton JE, Golden HE, Weber MH, Rains MC, Jones CE, Lee EH, Christensen JR, Bellmore RA, Lane CR. National hydrologic connectivity classification links wetlands with stream water quality. NATURE WATER 2023; 1:370-380. [PMID: 37389401 PMCID: PMC10302404 DOI: 10.1038/s44221-023-00057-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023]
Abstract
Wetland hydrologic connections to downstream waters influence stream water quality. However, no systematic approach for characterizing this connectivity exists. Here using physical principles, we categorized conterminous US freshwater wetlands into four hydrologic connectivity classes based on stream contact and flowpath depth to the nearest stream: riparian, non-riparian shallow, non-riparian mid-depth and non-riparian deep. These classes were heterogeneously distributed over the conterminous United States; for example, riparian dominated the south-eastern and Gulf coasts, while non-riparian deep dominated the Upper Midwest and High Plains. Analysis of a national stream dataset indicated acidification and organic matter brownification increased with connectivity. Eutrophication and sedimentation decreased with wetland area but did not respond to connectivity. This classification advances our mechanistic understanding of wetland influences on water quality nationally and could be applied globally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott G. Leibowitz
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Ryan A. Hill
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Irena F. Creed
- Department of Physical and Environmental Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jana E. Compton
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Heather E. Golden
- US EPA, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Watershed and Ecosystem Characterization Division, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Marc H. Weber
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Mark C. Rains
- School of Geosciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Chas E. Jones
- ORISE Post-doctoral Participant, c/o US EPA, CPHEA, PESD, Corvallis, OR, USA
- Present address: Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, Portland, OR, USA
| | - E. Henry Lee
- US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), Pacific Ecological Systems Division (PESD), Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Jay R. Christensen
- US EPA, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Watershed and Ecosystem Characterization Division, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Rebecca A. Bellmore
- National Research Council, c/o US EPA, CPHEA, PESD, Corvallis, OR, USA
- Present address: Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition, Juneau, AK, USA
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7
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Wang Q, Li Y, Liu L, Cui S, Liu X, Chen F, Jeppesen E. Human impact on current environmental state in Chinese lakes. J Environ Sci (China) 2023; 126:297-307. [PMID: 36503758 DOI: 10.1016/j.jes.2022.05.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Revised: 05/20/2022] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Anthropogenic and natural disturbance to inland aquatic ecosystems displays a notable spatial difference, yet data to measure these differences are scarce. This study encompasses 217 lakes distributed over five lake regions of China and elucidates the environmental factors determining the spatial variability of the water quality and trophic status. A significant correlation between human modification index in surrounding terrestrial systems (HMT) and trophic status of lake ecosystems (TSI) was found, and the regression slope in each region was similar except in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau region. It was further noted that the pattern of environmental factor network (EF network) differed among freshwater and saline lakes. The EF network was complex for freshwater lakes in less human-influenced areas, but intensive man-made influence disrupted most relationships except for those between total nitrogen, total phosphorus, chlorophyll-a, and water turbidity. As for regions including saline lakes, correlations among water salinity and organic forms of carbon and nitrogen were apparent. Our results suggest that HMT and EF network can be useful indicators of the ecological integrity of local lake ecosystems, and integrating spatial information on a large scale provides conservation planners the option for evaluating the potential risk on inland aquatic systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qianhong Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yun Li
- State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Le Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Suzhen Cui
- State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xia Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Feizhou Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; Sino-Danish Centre for Education and Research (SDC), Beijing 100049, China.
| | - Erik Jeppesen
- Sino-Danish Centre for Education and Research (SDC), Beijing 100049, China; Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Silkeborg 8600, Denmark; Limnology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences and Centre for Ecosystem Research and Implementation, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey; Institute of Marine Sciences, Middle East Technical University, Mersin, Turkey
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8
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Bansal S, Post van der Burg M, Fern RR, Jones JW, Lo R, McKenna OP, Tangen BA, Zhang Z, Gleason RA. Large increases in methane emissions expected from North America's largest wetland complex. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eade1112. [PMID: 36857447 PMCID: PMC9977182 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ade1112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Natural methane (CH4) emissions from aquatic ecosystems may rise because of human-induced climate warming, although the magnitude of increase is highly uncertain. Using an exceptionally large CH4 flux dataset (~19,000 chamber measurements) and remotely sensed information, we modeled plot- and landscape-scale wetland CH4 emissions from the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR), North America's largest wetland complex. Plot-scale CH4 emissions were driven by hydrology, temperature, vegetation, and wetland size. Historically, landscape-scale PPR wetland CH4 emissions were largely dependent on total wetland extent. However, regardless of future wetland extent, PPR CH4 emissions are predicted to increase by two- or threefold by 2100 under moderate or severe warming scenarios, respectively. Our findings suggest that international efforts to decrease atmospheric CH4 concentrations should jointly account for anthropogenic and natural emissions to maintain climate mitigation targets to the end of the century.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheel Bansal
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
| | - Max Post van der Burg
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
| | - Rachel R. Fern
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
- Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, San Marcos, TX, USA
| | - John W. Jones
- U.S. Geological Survey, Hydrologic Remote Sensing Branch, Kearneysville, WV, USA
| | - Rachel Lo
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
| | - Owen P. McKenna
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
| | - Brian A. Tangen
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
| | - Zhen Zhang
- Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Robert A. Gleason
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, USA
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9
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Fluet-Chouinard E, Stocker BD, Zhang Z, Malhotra A, Melton JR, Poulter B, Kaplan JO, Goldewijk KK, Siebert S, Minayeva T, Hugelius G, Joosten H, Barthelmes A, Prigent C, Aires F, Hoyt AM, Davidson N, Finlayson CM, Lehner B, Jackson RB, McIntyre PB. Extensive global wetland loss over the past three centuries. Nature 2023; 614:281-286. [PMID: 36755174 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05572-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 02/10/2023]
Abstract
Wetlands have long been drained for human use, thereby strongly affecting greenhouse gas fluxes, flood control, nutrient cycling and biodiversity1,2. Nevertheless, the global extent of natural wetland loss remains remarkably uncertain3. Here, we reconstruct the spatial distribution and timing of wetland loss through conversion to seven human land uses between 1700 and 2020, by combining national and subnational records of drainage and conversion with land-use maps and simulated wetland extents. We estimate that 3.4 million km2 (confidence interval 2.9-3.8) of inland wetlands have been lost since 1700, primarily for conversion to croplands. This net loss of 21% (confidence interval 16-23%) of global wetland area is lower than that suggested previously by extrapolations of data disproportionately from high-loss regions. Wetland loss has been concentrated in Europe, the United States and China, and rapidly expanded during the mid-twentieth century. Our reconstruction elucidates the timing and land-use drivers of global wetland losses, providing an improved historical baseline to guide assessment of wetland loss impact on Earth system processes, conservation planning to protect remaining wetlands and prioritization of sites for wetland restoration4.
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Affiliation(s)
- Etienne Fluet-Chouinard
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA. .,Center for Limnology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA. .,Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Benjamin D Stocker
- Department of Environmental Systems Science, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland.,Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland.,Institute of Geography, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.,Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Zhen Zhang
- Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Avni Malhotra
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Joe R Melton
- Climate Research Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Benjamin Poulter
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Biospheric Sciences Laboratory, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - Jed O Kaplan
- Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Kees Klein Goldewijk
- Faculty of Geosciences, Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Siebert
- Department of Crop Sciences, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Goettingen, Germany.,Centre of Biodiversity and Sustainable Land Use, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | | | - Gustaf Hugelius
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.,Department of Physical Geography, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.,Bolin Centre for Climate Research, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Hans Joosten
- Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Peatland Studies and Paleoecology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.,Greifswald Mire Centre, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Alexandra Barthelmes
- Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Peatland Studies and Paleoecology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.,Greifswald Mire Centre, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Catherine Prigent
- Sorbonne Université, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, LERMA, Paris, France.,Estellus, Paris, France
| | - Filipe Aires
- Sorbonne Université, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, LERMA, Paris, France.,Estellus, Paris, France
| | - Alison M Hoyt
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Nick Davidson
- Nick Davidson Environmental, Queens House, Wigmore, UK.,Gulbali Institute for Land, Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, Elizabeth Mitchell Drive, Albury, New South Wales, Australia
| | - C Max Finlayson
- Gulbali Institute for Land, Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, Elizabeth Mitchell Drive, Albury, New South Wales, Australia.,IHE Delft, Institute for Water Education, Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Bernhard Lehner
- Department of Geography, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Robert B Jackson
- Department of Earth System Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.,Woods Institute for the Environment and Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Peter B McIntyre
- Center for Limnology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.,Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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10
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Christensen JR, Golden HE, Alexander LC, Pickard BR, Fritz KM, Lane CR, Weber MH, Kwok RM, Keefer MN. Headwater streams and inland wetlands: Status and advancements of geospatial datasets and maps across the United States. EARTH-SCIENCE REVIEWS 2022; 235:1-24. [PMID: 36970305 PMCID: PMC10031651 DOI: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2022.104230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Headwater streams and inland wetlands provide essential functions that support healthy watersheds and downstream waters. However, scientists and aquatic resource managers lack a comprehensive synthesis of national and state stream and wetland geospatial datasets and emerging technologies that can further improve these data. We conducted a review of existing United States (US) federal and state stream and wetland geospatial datasets, focusing on their spatial extent, permanence classifications, and current limitations. We also examined recent peer-reviewed literature for emerging methods that can potentially improve the estimation, representation, and integration of stream and wetland datasets. We found that federal and state datasets rely heavily on the US Geological Survey's National Hydrography Dataset for stream extent and duration information. Only eleven states (22%) had additional stream extent information and seven states (14%) provided additional duration information. Likewise, federal and state wetland datasets primarily use the US Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) Geospatial Dataset, with only two states using non-NWI datasets. Our synthesis revealed that LiDAR-based technologies hold promise for advancing stream and wetland mapping at limited spatial extents. While machine learning techniques may help to scale-up these LiDAR-derived estimates, challenges related to preprocessing and data workflows remain. High-resolution commercial imagery, supported by public imagery and cloud computing, may further aid characterization of the spatial and temporal dynamics of streams and wetlands, especially using multi-platform and multi-temporal machine learning approaches. Models integrating both stream and wetland dynamics are limited, and field-based efforts must remain a key component in developing improved headwater stream and wetland datasets. Continued financial and partnership support of existing databases is also needed to enhance mapping and inform water resources research and policy decisions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jay R. Christensen
- Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Heather E. Golden
- Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Laurie C. Alexander
- Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC 20460 USA Region 10, US Environmental Protection Agency, Portland, OR 97205, USA
| | | | - Ken M. Fritz
- Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Charles R. Lane
- Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Athens, GA, 30605 USA
| | - Marc H. Weber
- Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, OR 97333 USA
| | - Rose M. Kwok
- Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds, Office of Water, US Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC 20460, USA
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11
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Creed IF, Badiou P, Enanga E, Lobb DA, Pattison-Williams JK, Lloyd-Smith P, Gloutney M. Can Restoration of Freshwater Mineral Soil Wetlands Deliver Nature-Based Climate Solutions to Agricultural Landscapes? Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.932415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This study advances scientific understanding of the magnitude of carbon sequestration that could be achieved through conservation (securing existing carbon stocks) and restoration (creating new carbon stocks) of freshwater mineral soil wetlands on agricultural landscapes. Within an agricultural landscape in southern Ontario (Canada), 65,261 wetlands comprising 63,135 ha were lost. Of these, 6,899 wetlands comprising 5,198 ha were “easy-to-restore” wetlands, defined as wetlands that were small (<0.5 ha), with no hydrological inflow or outflow, and that were drained by a drainage ditch and could be restored by plugging the drainage ditch. Within these easy-to-restore wetlands, a chronosequence of wetlands that covered a range of restoration ages [i.e., drained (0 years), 15 years, 25 years, 40 years, and intact marshes] was established to capture potential changes in rates of sedimentation and organic carbon (OC) sequestration with restoration age. Three sediment cores were collected at the center of the open-water portion of the wetland and segmented in the field. In the lab, each individual segment from each core was dried, sieved through a 2-mm mesh, weighed and analyzed for 137Cs and 210Pb radioisotopes and OC. OC stocks (35.60 Mg ha–1) and OC sequestration rates (0.89 Mg C ha–2 yr–1) in wetlands restored for 40 years were comparable to if not marginally larger than intact wetlands, suggesting that restoration promotes OC sequestration but that an initial recovery phase of up to 25 years or more is needed before returning to a pre-drainage equilibrium. An economic analysis to compare the costs and benefits of wetland conservation and restoration was then conducted. The benefit-cost analysis revealed that the financial benefits of carbon sequestration are greater than the financial costs over a 30-year time horizon for retaining wetlands but not for restoring wetlands. The breakeven costs such that wetland restoration is economically feasible based on current carbon price projections is estimated to be $17,173 CAD ha–1 over the 30-year time horizon; any wetland restoration project that costs this amount or less could be justified on economic grounds based solely on the carbon benefits. This study’s findings indicate that wetlands are important nature-based climate solutions, but that incentivizing their use through a carbon market will require either scientific innovations to reduce restoration costs or increase carbon sequestration rates, or stacking carbon benefits with other ecosystem service benefits into a comprehensive market for nature-based climate solutions.
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12
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Krabbenhoft CA, Allen GH, Lin P, Godsey SE, Allen DC, Burrows RM, DelVecchia AG, Fritz KM, Shanafield M, Burgin AJ, Zimmer MA, Datry T, Dodds WK, Jones CN, Mims MC, Franklin C, Hammond JC, Zipper S, Ward AS, Costigan KH, Beck HE, Olden JD. Assessing placement bias of the global river gauge network. NATURE SUSTAINABILITY 2022; 5:586-592. [PMID: 36213515 PMCID: PMC9534037 DOI: 10.1038/s41893-022-00873-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Knowing where and when rivers flow is paramount to managing freshwater ecosystems. Yet stream gauging stations are distributed sparsely across rivers globally and may not capture the diversity of fluvial network properties and anthropogenic influences. Here we evaluate the placement bias of a global stream gauge dataset on its representation of socioecological, hydrologic, climatic and physiographic diversity of rivers. We find that gauges are located disproportionally in large, perennial rivers draining more human-occupied watersheds. Gauges are sparsely distributed in protected areas and rivers characterized by non-perennial flow regimes, both of which are critical to freshwater conservation and water security concerns. Disparities between the geography of the global gauging network and the broad diversity of streams and rivers weakens our ability to understand critical hydrologic processes and make informed water-management and policy decisions. Our findings underscore the need to address current gauge placement biases by investing in and prioritizing the installation of new gauging stations, embracing alternative water-monitoring strategies, advancing innovation in hydrologic modelling, and increasing accessibility of local and regional gauging data to support human responses to water challenges, both today and in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corey A. Krabbenhoft
- Department of Biological Sciences and Research and Education in Energy, Environment and Water (RENEW) Institute, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - George H. Allen
- Department of Geography, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Peirong Lin
- Institute of Remote Sensing and GIS, School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Sarah E. Godsey
- Department of Geosciences, Idaho State University, Pocatello, ID, USA
| | - Daniel C. Allen
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Ryan M. Burrows
- School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Burnley, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Ken M. Fritz
- Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Margaret Shanafield
- National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia, Australia
| | - Amy J. Burgin
- Kansas Biological Survey–Center for Ecological Research, Environmental Studies Program, and Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Margaret A. Zimmer
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Thibault Datry
- INRAE, UR Riverly, Centre Lyon-Grenoble Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Walter K. Dodds
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA
| | - C. Nathan Jones
- Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA
| | - Meryl C. Mims
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Catherin Franklin
- Department of Geography, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - John C. Hammond
- US Geological Survey MD-DE-DC Water Science Center, Catonsville, MD, USA
| | - Sam Zipper
- Kansas Geological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Adam S. Ward
- O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | | | - Hylke E. Beck
- Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Ispra, Italy
| | - Julian D. Olden
- School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Wildlife, Fish & Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
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13
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Park J, Kumar M, Lane CR, Basu NB. Seasonality of inundation in geographically isolated wetlands across the United States. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS : ERL [WEB SITE] 2022; 17:1-54005. [PMID: 35662858 PMCID: PMC9161429 DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ac6149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Inundation area is a major control on the ecosystem services provisioned by geographically isolated wetlands. Despite its importance, there has not been any comprehensive study to map out the seasonal inundation characteristics of geographically isolated wetlands over the continental United States (CONUS). This study fills the aforementioned gap by evaluating the seasonality or the long-term intra-annual variations of wetland inundation in ten wetlandscapes across the CONUS. We also assess the consistency of these intra-annual variations. Finally, we evaluate the extent to which the seasonality can be explained based on widely available hydrologic fluxes. Our findings highlight significant intra-annual variations of inundation within most wetlandscapes, with a standard deviation of the long-term averaged monthly inundation area ranging from 15% to 151% of its mean across the wetlandscapes. Stark differences in inundation seasonality are observed between snow-affected vs. rain-fed wetlandscapes. The former usually shows the maximum monthly inundation in April following spring snowmelt (SM), while the latter experiences the maximum in February. Although the magnitude of inundation fraction has changed over time in several wetlandscapes, the seasonality of these wetlands shows remarkable constancy. Overall, commonly available regional hydrologic fluxes (e.g. rainfall, SM, and evapotranspiration) are found to be able to explain the inundation seasonality at wetlandscape scale with determination coefficients greater than 0.57 in 7 out of 10 wetlandscapes. Our methodology and presented results may be used to map inundation seasonality and consequently account for its impact on wetland functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junehyeong Park
- Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, United States of America
| | - Mukesh Kumar
- Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, United States of America
| | - Charles R Lane
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH, United States of America
| | - Nandita B Basu
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada
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14
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Clare S, Creed IF. The Essential Role of Wetland Restoration Practitioners in the Science-Policy-Practice Process. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.838502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We conducted a “living laboratory” study using a holistic transdisciplinary approach to demonstrate how new scientific tools and policy instruments could be mobilized to achieve wetland restoration goals. Our living laboratory was situated on the prairie pothole landscape in the province of Alberta, Canada, where policies require the replacement of lost wetland habitat. We created tools to map ditch-drained wetlands and to measure their functions in terms of hydrological health, water quality improvement, and ecological health to optimize targeting of wetland restoration sites. We also tested new policy instruments to incentivize private landowners to restore ditch-drained wetlands. However, we arguably failed in the implementation of the restoration program due to barriers that severely limited landowner participation, resulting in only a small number of wetlands being restored. Despite strength in science and a profound understanding of the policy, on-the-ground restoration work was stalled due to the interactive effects of environmental, social, economic, and political barriers. We discovered that despite our focus on overcoming the science-policy gap, it is the practice realm that requires more attention from both scientists and policy makers engaged in wetland restoration activities. Generally, the tools we developed were irrelevant because of complex interactions between actors and barriers within the policy, governance, and site-specific contexts that limited the use and application of the tools. Our living laboratory highlights the risks of engaging in use-inspired research without having a clear understanding of the actors and the interacting contexts that influence their behavior, motivations, and risk tolerance. Informed by our experiences, we offer key considerations for better engagement of practitioners in the design and implementation of wetland restoration programs.
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15
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Abstract
AbstractWatershed resilience is the ability of a watershed to maintain its characteristic system state while concurrently resisting, adapting to, and reorganizing after hydrological (for example, drought, flooding) or biogeochemical (for example, excessive nutrient) disturbances. Vulnerable waters include non-floodplain wetlands and headwater streams, abundant watershed components representing the most distal extent of the freshwater aquatic network. Vulnerable waters are hydrologically dynamic and biogeochemically reactive aquatic systems, storing, processing, and releasing water and entrained (that is, dissolved and particulate) materials along expanding and contracting aquatic networks. The hydrological and biogeochemical functions emerging from these processes affect the magnitude, frequency, timing, duration, storage, and rate of change of material and energy fluxes among watershed components and to downstream waters, thereby maintaining watershed states and imparting watershed resilience. We present here a conceptual framework for understanding how vulnerable waters confer watershed resilience. We demonstrate how individual and cumulative vulnerable-water modifications (for example, reduced extent, altered connectivity) affect watershed-scale hydrological and biogeochemical disturbance response and recovery, which decreases watershed resilience and can trigger transitions across thresholds to alternative watershed states (for example, states conducive to increased flood frequency or nutrient concentrations). We subsequently describe how resilient watersheds require spatial heterogeneity and temporal variability in hydrological and biogeochemical interactions between terrestrial systems and down-gradient waters, which necessitates attention to the conservation and restoration of vulnerable waters and their downstream connectivity gradients. To conclude, we provide actionable principles for resilient watersheds and articulate research needs to further watershed resilience science and vulnerable-water management.
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16
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Hedden SC, Gido KB. AGE-SPECIFIC PATTERNS OF OCCURRENCE, DENSITY, AND GROWTH OF TWO CYPRINID FISHES IN HEADWATER PRAIRIE STREAMS. SOUTHWEST NAT 2022. [DOI: 10.1894/0038-4909-65.3-4.205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Skyler C. Hedden
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, 116 Ackert Hall, Manhattan, KS 66506
| | - Keith B. Gido
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, 116 Ackert Hall, Manhattan, KS 66506
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17
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Botter G, Vingiani F, Senatore A, Jensen C, Weiler M, McGuire K, Mendicino G, Durighetto N. Hierarchical climate-driven dynamics of the active channel length in temporary streams. Sci Rep 2021; 11:21503. [PMID: 34728691 PMCID: PMC8563734 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00922-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Looking across a landscape, river networks appear deceptively static. However, flowing streams expand and contract following ever-changing hydrological conditions of the surrounding environment. Despite the ecological and biogeochemical value of rivers with discontinuous flow, deciphering the temporary nature of streams and quantifying their extent remains challenging. Using a unique observational dataset spanning diverse geomorphoclimatic settings, we demonstrate the existence of a general hierarchical structuring of river network dynamics. Specifically, temporary stream activation follows a fixed and repeatable sequence, in which the least persistent sections activate only when the most persistent ones are already flowing. This hierarchical phenomenon not only facilitates monitoring activities, but enables the development of a general mathematical framework that elucidates how climate drives temporal variations in the active stream length. As the climate gets drier, the average fraction of the flowing network decreases while its relative variability increases. Our study provides a novel conceptual basis for characterizing temporary streams and quantifying their ecological and biogeochemical impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianluca Botter
- Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, University of Padua, Via Marzolo 9, 35131, Padua, PD, Italy.
| | - Filippo Vingiani
- Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, University of Padua, Via Marzolo 9, 35131, Padua, PD, Italy
| | - Alfonso Senatore
- Department of Environmental Engineering, University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci 42, 87036, Arcavacata di Rende, CS, Italy
| | - Carrie Jensen
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Tech, Cheatham Hall, 210B, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Markus Weiler
- Fakultät für Umwelt und Natürliche Ressourcen, Universität Freiburg, Friedrichstr. 39, 79098, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Kevin McGuire
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Tech, Cheatham Hall, 210B, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Giuseppe Mendicino
- Department of Environmental Engineering, University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci 42, 87036, Arcavacata di Rende, CS, Italy
| | - Nicola Durighetto
- Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, University of Padua, Via Marzolo 9, 35131, Padua, PD, Italy
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18
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McKenna OP, Mushet DM, Kucia SR, McCulloch‐Huseby EC. Limited shifts in the distribution of migratory bird breeding habitat density in response to future changes in climate. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2021; 31:e02428. [PMID: 34318972 PMCID: PMC9285366 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2020] [Revised: 02/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Grasslands, and the depressional wetlands that exist throughout them, are endangered ecosystems that face both climate and land-use change pressures. Tens of millions of dollars are invested annually to manage the existing fragments of these ecosystems to serve as critical breeding habitat for migratory birds. The North American Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) contains millions of depressional wetlands that produce between 50% and 80% of the continent's waterfowl population. Previous modeling efforts suggested that climate change would result in a shift of suitable waterfowl breeding habitat from the central to the southeast portion of the PPR, an area where over half of the depressional wetlands have been drained. The implications of these projections suggest a massive investment in wetland restoration in the southeastern PPR would be needed to sustain waterfowl populations at harvestable levels. We revisited these modeled results indicating how future climate may impact the distribution of waterfowl-breeding habitat using up-to-date climate model projections and a newly developed model for simulating prairie-pothole wetland hydrology. We also presented changes to the number of "May ponds," a metric used by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to estimate waterfowl breeding populations and establish harvest regulations. Based on the output of 32 climate models and two emission scenarios, we found no evidence that the distribution of May ponds would shift in the future. However, our results projected a 12% decrease to 1% increase in May pond numbers when comparing the most recent climate period (1989-2018) to the end of the 21st century (2070-2099). When combined, our results suggest areas in the PPR that currently support the highest densities of intact wetland basins, and thus support the largest numbers of breeding-duck pairs, will likely also be the places most critical to maintaining continental waterfowl populations in an uncertain future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Owen P. McKenna
- U.S. Geological SurveyNorthern Prairie Wildlife Research Center8711 37th Street SEJamestownNorth Dakota58401USA
| | - David M. Mushet
- U.S. Geological SurveyNorthern Prairie Wildlife Research Center8711 37th Street SEJamestownNorth Dakota58401USA
| | - Samuel R. Kucia
- U.S. Geological SurveyNorthern Prairie Wildlife Research Center8711 37th Street SEJamestownNorth Dakota58401USA
| | - Elyssa C. McCulloch‐Huseby
- U.S. Geological SurveyNorthern Prairie Wildlife Research Center8711 37th Street SEJamestownNorth Dakota58401USA
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19
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de Castro BD, Wingen NMDA, Dos Santos SHD, Godoy RS, Maltchik L, Lanés LEK, Oliveira GT. Biomarkers of oxidative stress in the post-embryonic characterization of the neotropical annual killifish. Biogerontology 2021; 22:507-530. [PMID: 34302586 DOI: 10.1007/s10522-021-09931-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Annual killifish are among the most remarkable extremophile species with the shortest vertebrate life span. Few studies have reported on the oxidative balance throughout their life cycle and its association to the natural aging process of these neotropical animals in a natural environment. We standardized and analyzed physiological markers related to the redox balance of the annual killifish (Cynopoecilus fulgens) throughout the post-embryonic life cycle (enzyme activity of Superoxide Dismutase, Catalase, Glutathione Peroxidase, and Glutathione S-transferase, as well as the determination of the levels of Lipoperoxidation, Carbonylated Proteins, and Total Proteins). We tested the influence of environmental variables on these biomarkers. Individuals were collected, including juveniles, adults, and seniles, in three sampling units around the Parque Nacional da Lagoa do Peixe, located in the Coastal Plain of Rio Grande do Sul. We observed that males and females used different physiological strategies of their redox balance during their life cycle, and their oxidative balance was influenced by their reproductive period and environmental variables (water temperature, abundance of predators, abundance of another sympatric annual killifish species, and abundance of C. fulgens). The population of each temporary pond presented different physiological responses to the adaptation of their life cycle, and there was an influence of environmental component as a modulator of this cycle. Our study offers reference values that will be useful for comparison in future research with short-lived organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruna Dutra de Castro
- Conservation Physiology Laboratory, School of Health and Life Sciences, PUCRS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | | | | | - Robson Souza Godoy
- Laboratory of Ecology and Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems, Health Sciences Center, UNISINOS, São Leopoldo, RS, Brazil
| | - Leonardo Maltchik
- Laboratory of Ecology and Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems, Health Sciences Center, UNISINOS, São Leopoldo, RS, Brazil
| | - Luis Esteban Krause Lanés
- Conservation Physiology Laboratory, School of Health and Life Sciences, PUCRS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Guendalina Turcato Oliveira
- Conservation Physiology Laboratory, School of Health and Life Sciences, PUCRS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
- Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Morphophysiological Sciences, School of Health and Life Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande Do Sul, Ipiranga Avenue, 6681 Pd. 12, Block C, class 270, Porto Alegre, RS, 90619-900, Brazil.
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20
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Evenson GR, Golden HE, Christensen JR, Lane CR, Rajib A, D’Amico E, Mahoney DT, White E, Wu Q. Wetland restoration yields dynamic nitrate responses across the Upper Mississippi river basin. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 2021; 3:1-10. [PMID: 34746644 PMCID: PMC8567145 DOI: 10.1088/2515-7620/ac2125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Wetland restoration is a primary management option for removing surplus nitrogen draining from agricultural landscapes. However, wetland capacity to mitigate nitrogen losses at large river-basin scales remains uncertain. This is largely due to a limited number of studies that address the cumulative and dynamic effects of restored wetlands across the landscape on downstream nutrient conditions. We analyzed wetland restoration impacts on modeled nitrate dynamics across 279 subbasins comprising the ∼0.5 million km2 Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB), USA, which covers eight states and houses ∼30 million people. Restoring ∼8,000 km2 of wetlands will reduce mean annual nitrate loads to the UMRB outlet by 12%, a substantial improvement over existing conditions but markedly less than widely cited estimates. Our lower wetland efficacy estimates are partly attributed to improved representation of processes not considered by preceding empirical studies - namely the potential for nitrate to bypass wetlands (i.e., via subsurface tile drainage) and be stored or transformed within the river network itself. Our novel findings reveal that wetlands mitigate surplus nitrogen basin-wide, yet they may not be as universally effective in tiled landscapes and because of river network processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grey R Evenson
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, OH, United States of America
| | - Heather E Golden
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, OH, United States of America
| | - Jay R Christensen
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Cincinnati, OH, United States of America
| | - Charles R Lane
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Athens, GA, United States of America
| | - Adnan Rajib
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering, Texas A&M University, Kingsville, TX, United States of America
| | - Ellen D’Amico
- Pegasus Corporation c/o U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH, United States of America
| | - David Tyler Mahoney
- Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, United States of America
| | - Elaheh White
- Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education c/o U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH, United States of America
| | - Qiusheng Wu
- Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, United States of America
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21
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Jansujwicz JS, Calhoun AJK, Bieluch KH, McGreavy B, Silka L, Sponarski C. Localism "Reimagined": Building a Robust Localist Paradigm for Overcoming Emerging Conservation Challenges. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2021; 67:91-108. [PMID: 33205243 DOI: 10.1007/s00267-020-01392-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2020] [Accepted: 10/29/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Governance gaps at both the federal and state level increasingly necessitate local action and remain a key driver of community-based solutions. A localist paradigm-encompassing models such as community-based management, citizen science, and cooperative research-offers a promising approach for bridging governance gaps by engaging citizens, co-producing knowledge, fostering trust, and developing innovative solutions to address complex conservation challenges. Yet, despite notable successes, significant barriers constrain widespread implementation of localist approaches. This is particularly evident in natural resource-dependent communities. Rural communities are increasingly faced with a range of conservation challenges related to rapid climate and land-use changes but often they lack the capacity to support locally based initiatives to better anticipate, plan for, and mitigate these changes. We examined four diverse conservation cases based on localist approaches in Maine, USA, to bring to the fore key factors that influence outcomes in different social-ecological contexts. We compared cases along three frequently discussed dimensions-governance systems, social adaptive capacities, and technology and data characteristics and found that localist outcomes vary widely depending on key metrics within each of these dimensions. There is no single way to advance localism, but we offer multiple ways to incorporate a community-based perspective into management. This synthesis of data from our collective participatory research projects provides guidance to maximize the potential of localist conservation approaches in complex social and biophysical arenas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Spelke Jansujwicz
- Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA.
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA.
| | - Aram J K Calhoun
- Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
| | - Karen Hutchins Bieluch
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Environmental Studies Program, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Bridie McGreavy
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
| | - Linda Silka
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
| | - Carly Sponarski
- Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
- Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
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Maximizing US nitrate removal through wetland protection and restoration. Nature 2020; 588:625-630. [PMID: 33328640 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-03042-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2020] [Accepted: 10/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Growing populations and agricultural intensification have led to raised riverine nitrogen (N) loads, widespread oxygen depletion in coastal zones (coastal hypoxia)1 and increases in the incidence of algal blooms.Although recent work has suggested that individual wetlands have the potential to improve water quality2-9, little is known about the current magnitude of wetland N removal at the landscape scale. Here we use National Wetland Inventory data and 5-kilometre grid-scale estimates of N inputs and outputs to demonstrate that current N removal by US wetlands (about 860 ± 160 kilotonnes of nitrogen per year) is limited by a spatial disconnect between high-density wetland areas and N hotspots. Our model simulations suggest that a spatially targeted increase in US wetland area by 10 per cent (5.1 million hectares) would double wetland N removal. This increase would provide an estimated 54 per cent decrease in N loading in nitrate-affected watersheds such as the Mississippi River Basin. The costs of this increase in area would be approximately 3.3 billion US dollars annually across the USA-nearly twice the cost of wetland restoration on non-agricultural, undeveloped land-but would provide approximately 40 times more N removal. These results suggest that water quality improvements, as well as other types of ecosystem services such as flood control and fish and wildlife habitat, should be considered when creating policy regarding wetland restoration and protection.
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Sullivan SMP, Rains MC, Rodewald AD, Buzbee WW, Rosemond AD. Distorting science, putting water at risk. Science 2020; 369:766-768. [PMID: 32792380 DOI: 10.1126/science.abb6899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S Mažeika Patricio Sullivan
- Schiermeier Olentangy River Wetland Research Park, School of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
| | - Mark C Rains
- School of Geosciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Amanda D Rodewald
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.,Department of Natural Resources, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - William W Buzbee
- Georgetown University Law Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Amy D Rosemond
- Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
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Bertassello LE, Aubeneau AF, Botter G, Jawitz JW, Rao PSC. Emergent dispersal networks in dynamic wetlandscapes. Sci Rep 2020; 10:14696. [PMID: 32895428 PMCID: PMC7477191 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-71739-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2020] [Accepted: 08/19/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The connectivity among distributed wetlands is critical for aquatic habitat integrity and to maintain metapopulation biodiversity. Here, we investigated the spatiotemporal fluctuations of wetlandscape connectivity driven by stochastic hydroclimatic forcing, conceptualizing wetlands as dynamic habitat nodes in dispersal networks. We hypothesized that spatiotemporal hydrologic variability influences the heterogeneity in wetland attributes (e.g., size and shape distributions) and wetland spatial organization (e.g., gap distances), in turn altering the variance of the dispersal network topology and the patterns of ecological connectivity. We tested our hypotheses by employing a DEM-based, depth-censoring approach to assess the eco-hydrological dynamics in a synthetically generated landscape and three representative wetlandscapes in the United States. Network topology was examined for two end-member connectivity measures: centroid-to-centroid (C2C), and perimeter-to-perimeter (P2P), representing the full range of within-patch habitat preferences. Exponentially tempered Pareto node-degree distributions well described the observed structural connectivity of both types of networks. High wetland clustering and attribute heterogeneity exacerbated the differences between C2C and P2P networks, with Pareto node-degree distributions emerging only for a limited range of P2P configuration. Wetlandscape network topology and dispersal strategies condition species survival and biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo E Bertassello
- Lyles School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2051, USA.
| | - Antoine F Aubeneau
- Lyles School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2051, USA
| | - Gianluca Botter
- Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of Padua, 35100, Padua, Italy
| | - James W Jawitz
- Soil and Water Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - P S C Rao
- Lyles School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2051, USA
- Agronomy Department, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2054, USA
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Rajib A, Golden HE, Lane CR, Wu Q. Surface Depression and Wetland Water Storage Improves Major River Basin Hydrologic Predictions. WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH 2020; 56:e2019WR026561. [PMID: 33364639 PMCID: PMC7751708 DOI: 10.1029/2019wr026561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2019] [Accepted: 04/30/2020] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Surface water storage in small yet abundant landscape depressions-including wetlands and other small waterbodies-is largely disregarded in conventional hydrologic modeling practices. No quantitative evidence exists of how their exclusion may lead to potentially inaccurate model projections and understanding of hydrologic dynamics across the world's major river basins. To fill this knowledge gap, we developed the first-ever major river basin-scale modeling approach integrating surface depressions and focusing on the 450,000-km2 Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB) in the United States. We applied a novel topography-based algorithm to estimate areas and volumes of ~455,000 surface depressions (>1 ha) across the UMRB (in addition to lakes and reservoirs) and subsequently aggregated their effects per subbasin. Compared to a "no depression" conventional model, our depression-integrated model (a) improved streamflow simulation accuracy with increasing upstream abundance of depression storage, (b) significantly altered the spatial patterns and magnitudes of water yields across 315,000 km2 (70%) of the basin area, and (c) provided realistic spatial distributions of rootzone wetness conditions corresponding to satellite-based data. Results further suggest that storage capacity (i.e., volume) alone does not fully explain depressions' cumulative effects on landscape hydrologic responses. Local (i.e., subbasin level) climatic and geophysical drivers and downstream flowpath-regulating structures (e.g., reservoirs and dams) influence the extent to which depression storage volume in a subbasin causes hydrologic effects. With these new insights, our study supports the integration of surface depression storage and thereby catalyzes a reassessment of current hydrological modeling and management practices for basin-scale studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adnan Rajib
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, Kingsville, TX, USA
- Formerly at Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Heather E Golden
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Charles R Lane
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Qiusheng Wu
- Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA
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27
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Streamflow Decline in the Yellow River along with Socioeconomic Development: Past and Future. WATER 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/w12030823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Human society and ecosystems worldwide are increasinAagly threatened by water shortages. Despite numerous studies of climatic impacts on water availability, little is known about the influences of socioeconomic development on streamflow and water sustainability. Here, we show that the streamflow from the Yellow River to the sea has decreased by more than 80% in total over the last 60 years due to increased water consumption by agricultural, industrial and urban developments (76% of the streamflow decrease, similarly hereinafter), decreased precipitation (13%), reservoir construction (6%) and revegetation (5%). We predict that if the past trends in streamflow will continue, year-round dry-up in the lower Yellow River will commence in the late 2020s or early 2030s, unless effective countermeasures such as water diversion from the Yangtze River are taken. These results suggest that streamflow in semiarid basins is highly vulnerable to human impacts and that streamflow decline would in turn hinder further socioeconomic development and endanger river-sea ecosystems.
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Berhane TM, Lane CR, Mengistu SG, Christensen J, Golden HE, Qiu S, Zhu Z, Wu Q. Land-Cover Changes to Surface-Water Buffers in the Midwestern USA: 25 Years of Landsat Data Analyses (1993-2017). REMOTE SENSING 2020; 12:754. [PMID: 33414929 PMCID: PMC7784704 DOI: 10.3390/rs12050754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
To understand the timing, extent, and magnitude of land use/land cover (LULC) change in buffer areas surrounding Midwestern US waters, we analyzed the full imagery archive (1982-2017) of three Landsat footprints covering ~100,000 km2. The study area included urbanizing Chicago, Illinois and St. Louis, Missouri regions and agriculturally dominated landscapes (i.e., Peoria, Illinois). The Continuous Change Detection and Classification algorithm identified 1993-2017 LULC change across three Landsat footprints and in 90 m buffers for ~110,000 surface waters; waters were also size-binned into five groups for buffer LULC change analyses. Importantly, buffer-area LULC change magnitude was frequently much greater than footprint-level change. Surface-water extent in buffers increased by 14-35x the footprint rate and forest decreased by 2-9x. Development in buffering areas increased by 2-4x the footprint-rate in Chicago and Peoria area footprints but was similar to the change rate in the St. Louis area footprint. The LULC buffer-area change varied in waterbody size, with the greatest change typically occurring in the smallest waters (e.g., <0.1 ha). These novel analyses suggest that surface-water buffer LULC change is occurring more rapidly than footprint-level change, likely modifying the hydrology, water quality, and biotic integrity of existing water resources, as well as potentially affecting down-gradient, watershed-scale storages and flows of water, solutes, and particulate matter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tedros M. Berhane
- Pegasus Technical Services, Inc., c/o U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45219, USA
| | - Charles R. Lane
- Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Samson G. Mengistu
- National Research Council, c/o U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Jay Christensen
- Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Heather E. Golden
- Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Shi Qiu
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Zhe Zhu
- Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Qiusheng Wu
- Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
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29
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Tao S, Fang J, Ma S, Cai Q, Xiong X, Tian D, Zhao X, Fang L, Zhang H, Zhu J, Zhao S. Changes in China's lakes: climate and human impacts. Natl Sci Rev 2020; 7:132-140. [PMID: 34692027 PMCID: PMC8288840 DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwz103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2018] [Revised: 05/29/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Lakes have played a critical role in providing water and ecosystem services for people and other organisms in China for millennia. However, accelerating climate change and economic boom have resulted in unprecedented changes in these valuable lakes. Using Landsat images covering the entity of the country, we explored the changes in China's lakes and the associated driving forces over the last 30 years (i.e. mid-1980s to 2015). We discovered that China's lakes have changed with divergent regional trends: in the sparsely populated Tibetan Plateau, lakes are abundant and the lake area has increased dramatically from 38 596 to 46 831 km2 (i.e. increased by 8235 km2, or 21.3%), whereas, in the densely populated northern and eastern regions, lakes are relatively scarce and the lake area has decreased from 36 659 to 33 657 km2 (i.e. decreased by 3002 km2, or 8.2%). In particular, severe lake decreases occurred in the Mongolia-Xinjiang Plateau and the Eastern Plain (-2151 km2). Statistical analyses indicated that climate was the most important factor controlling lake changes in the Tibetan Plateau, the Yun-Gui Plateau and the Northeast Plain. However, the strength of climatic control on lake changes was low in the Eastern Plain and the Mongolia-Xinjiang Plateau, where human activities, e.g. impoldering, irrigation and mining, have caused serious impacts on lakes. Further lake changes will exacerbate regional imbalances between lake resources and population distribution, and thus may increase the risk of water-resource crises in China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shengli Tao
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jingyun Fang
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.,State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Suhui Ma
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Qiong Cai
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xinyu Xiong
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Di Tian
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xia Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Leqi Fang
- School of Electronics Engineering and Computer Science, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Heng Zhang
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jiangling Zhu
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Shuqing Zhao
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
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30
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Bertassello LE, Jawitz JW, Aubeneau AF, Botter G, Rao PSC. Stochastic dynamics of wetlandscapes: Ecohydrological implications of shifts in hydro-climatic forcing and landscape configuration. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 694:133765. [PMID: 31756814 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.133765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2019] [Revised: 06/28/2019] [Accepted: 08/03/2019] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
Wetlands are embedded in landscapes in fractal spatial patterns, and are characterized by highly dynamic, interlinked hydrological, biogeochemical, and ecological functions. We propose here a stochastic approach to evaluate and predict the spatiotemporal hydrologic variability of wetlands at landscape scale (100 km2). Stochastic hydro-climatic forcing (daily rainfall and evapotranspiration) and the landscape topographic setting (spatial structure of wetlands within the landscape) are key drivers of wetland eco-hydrologic functionality. The novelty of our approach lies in the quantification of the hydrological dynamics for all wetlands distributed in a given landscape, and in linking stochasticity of hydroclimatic forcing and ecologically meaningful wetland network metrics. We applied the modeling framework to investigate daily hydrologic dynamics in six landscapes across the U.S. that span gradients of hydroclimate and abundance of wetlands. We assess landscape-scale patterns using four key wetland hydrological attributes that have significance in terms of aquatic habitat suitability and dispersal: (1) Abundance (2) Diversity (3) Persistence, and (4) Accessibility. We observe that the hydrologic responses of each of the six landscapes are driven by the interactions between regional stochastic hydro-climatic forcing and landscape topographic setting. Despite differences in these features, similar scaling relations define diversity (area distributions) and accessibility (separation-distance distributions). Persistence of hydrologic regimes, defined by duration of inundation above thresholds, was least in more-arid settings, and higher in humid settings, consistent with intuitive understanding. These results can support assessments of the spatiotemporal variability of ecohydrological attributes in diverse wetlandscapes, including aquatic species dispersal and habitat suitability for unique flora and fauna.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo E Bertassello
- Lyles School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2051, USA.
| | - James W Jawitz
- Soil and Water Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Antoine F Aubeneau
- Lyles School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2051, USA
| | - Gianluca Botter
- Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of Padua, Padua I-35100, Italy
| | - P Suresh C Rao
- Lyles School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2051, USA; Agronomy Department, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2054, USA
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31
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Brintrup K, Amigo C, Fernández J, Hernández A, Pérez F, Félez-Bernal J, Butturini A, Saez-Carrillo K, Yevenes MA, Figueroa R. Comparison of organic matter in intermittent and perennial rivers of Mediterranean Chile with the support of citizen science. REVISTA CHILENA DE HISTORIA NATURAL 2019. [DOI: 10.1186/s40693-019-0083-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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32
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Zhang X, Chen N, Sheng H, Ip C, Yang L, Chen Y, Sang Z, Tadesse T, Lim TPY, Rajabifard A, Bueti C, Zeng L, Wardlow B, Wang S, Tang S, Xiong Z, Li D, Niyogi D. Urban drought challenge to 2030 sustainable development goals. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 693:133536. [PMID: 31374498 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2019] [Revised: 07/18/2019] [Accepted: 07/21/2019] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
In the first two decades of the 21st century, 79 global big cities have suffered extensively from drought disaster. Meanwhile, climate change has magnified urban drought in both frequency and severity, putting tremendous pressure on a city's water supply. Therefore, tackling the challenges of urban drought is an integral part of achieving the targets set in at least 5 different Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Yet, the current literatures on drought have not placed sufficient emphasis on urban drought challenge in achieving the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This review is intended to fill this knowledge gap by identifying the key concepts behind urban drought, including the definition, occurrence, characteristics, formation, and impacts. Then, four sub-categories of urban drought are proposed, including precipitation-induced, runoff-induced, pollution-induced, and demand-induced urban droughts. These sub-categories can support city stakeholders in taking drought mitigation actions and advancing the following SDGs: SDG 6 "Clean water and sanitation", SDG 11 "Sustainable cities and communities", SDG 12 "Responsible production and consumption", SDG 13 "Climate actions", and SDG 15 "Life on land". To further support cities in taking concrete actions in reaching the listed SDGs, this perspective proposes five actions that city stakeholders can undertake in enhancing drought resilience and preparedness:1) Raising public awareness on water right and water saving; 2) Fostering flexible reliable, and integrated urban water supply; 3) Improving efficiency of urban water management; 4) Investing in sustainability science research for urban drought; and 5) Strengthening resilience efforts via international cooperation. In short, this review contains a wealth of insights on urban drought and highlights the intrinsic connections between drought resilience and the 2030 SDGs. It also proposes five action steps for policymakers and city stakeholders that would support them in taking the first step to combat and mitigate the impacts of urban droughts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping, and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Nengcheng Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping, and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, China.
| | - Hao Sheng
- State Key Laboratory of Software Development Environment, School of Computer Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China.
| | - Chris Ip
- International Telecommunication Union (ITU), 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland
| | - Long Yang
- School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Yiqun Chen
- Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Centre for SDIs and Land Administration (CSDILA), Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Ziqin Sang
- State Key Laboratory of Optical Communication Technologies and Networks, China Information Communication Technologies Group Corporation, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Tsegaye Tadesse
- National Drought Mitigation Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA
| | - Tania Pei Yee Lim
- United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), Nairobi 00100, Kenya
| | - Abbas Rajabifard
- Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia; Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Centre for SDIs and Land Administration (CSDILA), Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
| | - Cristina Bueti
- International Telecommunication Union (ITU), 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland
| | - Linglin Zeng
- College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Brian Wardlow
- National Drought Mitigation Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA
| | - Siqi Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping, and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Shiyi Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping, and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Zhang Xiong
- State Key Laboratory of Software Development Environment, School of Computer Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Deren Li
- State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping, and Remote Sensing (LIESMARS), Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Geospatial Technology, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Dev Niyogi
- Department of Agronomy-Crops, Soil, Environmental Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA; Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
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33
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Synergistic Interaction of Climate and Land-Use Drivers Alter the Function of North American, Prairie-Pothole Wetlands. SUSTAINABILITY 2019. [DOI: 10.3390/su11236581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Prairie-pothole wetlands provide the critical habitat necessary for supporting North American migratory waterfowl populations. However, climate and land-use change threaten the sustainability of these wetland ecosystems. Very few experiments and analyses have been designed to investigate the relative impacts of climate and land-use change drivers, as well as the antagonistic or synergistic interactions among these drivers on ecosystem processes. Prairie-pothole wetland water budgets are highly dependent on atmospheric inputs and especially surface runoff, which makes them especially susceptible to changes in climate and land use. Here, we present the history of prairie-pothole climate and land-use change research and address the following research questions: 1) What are the relative effects of climate and land-use change on the sustainability of prairie-pothole wetlands? and 2) Do the effects of climate and land-use change interact differently under different climatic conditions? To address these research questions, we modeled 25 wetland basins (1949–2018) and measured the response of the lowest wetland in the watershed to wetland drainage and climate variability. We found that during an extremely wet period (1993–2000) wetland drainage decreased the time at which the lowest wetland reached its spill point by four years, resulting in 10 times the amount of water spilling out of the watershed towards local stream networks. By quantifying the relative effects of both climate and land-use drivers on wetland ecosystems our findings can help managers cope with uncertainties about flooding risks and provide insight into how to manage wetlands to restore functionality.
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34
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Golden HE, Rajib A, Lane CR, Christensen JR, Wu Q, Mengistu S. Non-floodplain Wetlands Affect Watershed Nutrient Dynamics: A Critical Review. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2019; 53:7203-7214. [PMID: 31244063 PMCID: PMC9096804 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.8b07270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Wetlands have the capacity to retain nitrogen and phosphorus and are thereby often considered a viable option for improving water quality at local scales. However, little is known about the cumulative influence of wetlands outside of floodplains, i.e., non-floodplain wetlands (NFWs), on surface water quality at watershed scales. Such evidence is important to meet global, national, regional, and local water quality goals effectively and comprehensively. In this critical review, we synthesize the state of the science about the watershed-scale effects of NFWs on nutrient-based (nitrogen, phosphorus) water quality. We further highlight where knowledge is limited in this research area and the challenges of garnering this information. On the basis of previous wetland literature, we develop emerging concepts that assist in advancing the science linking NFWs to watershed-scale nutrient conditions. Finally, we ask, "Where do we go from here?" We address this question using a 2-fold approach. First, we demonstrate, via example model simulations, how explicitly considering NFWs in watershed nutrient modeling changes predicted nutrient yields to receiving waters-and how this may potentially affect future water quality management decisions. Second, we outline research recommendations that will improve our scientific understanding of how NFWs affect downstream water quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather E Golden
- National Exposure Research Laboratory , U.S. Environmental Protection Agency , Office of Research and Development, 26 West Martin Luther King Drive , Cincinnati , Ohio 45268 , United States
| | - Adnan Rajib
- Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education , c/o Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, 26 West Martin Luther King Drive , Cincinnati , Ohio 45268 , United States
| | - Charles R Lane
- National Exposure Research Laboratory , U.S. Environmental Protection Agency , Office of Research and Development, 26 West Martin Luther King Drive , Cincinnati , Ohio 45268 , United States
| | - Jay R Christensen
- National Exposure Research Laboratory , U.S. Environmental Protection Agency , Office of Research and Development, 26 West Martin Luther King Drive , Cincinnati , Ohio 45268 , United States
| | - Qiusheng Wu
- Department of Geography , University of Tennessee , Knoxville , Tennessee 37996 , United States
| | - Samson Mengistu
- National Research Council , National Academy of Sciences, c/o Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, 26 West Martin Luther King Drive , Cincinnati , Ohio 45268 , United States
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Wua Q, Lane CR, Li X, Zhao K, Zhou Y, Clinton N, DeVries B, Golden HE, Lang MW. Integrating LiDAR data and multi-temporal aerial imagery to map wetland inundation dynamics using Google Earth Engine. REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT 2019; 228:1-13. [PMID: 33776151 PMCID: PMC7995247 DOI: 10.1016/j.rse.2019.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
The Prairie Pothole Region of North America is characterized by millions of depressional wetlands, which provide critical habitats for globally significant populations of migratory waterfowl and other wildlife species. Due to their relatively small size and shallow depth, these wetlands are highly sensitive to climate variability and anthropogenic changes, exhibiting inter- and intra-annual inundation dynamics. Moderate-resolution satellite imagery (e.g., Landsat, Sentinel) alone cannot be used to effectively delineate these small depressional wetlands. By integrating fine spatial resolution Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data and multi-temporal (2009-2017) aerial images, we developed a fully automated approach to delineate wetland inundation extent at watershed scales using Google Earth Engine. Machine learning algorithms were used to classify aerial imagery with additional spectral indices to extract potential wetland inundation areas, which were further refined using LiDAR-derived landform depressions. The wetland delineation results were then compared to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) geospatial dataset and existing global-scale surface water products to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. We tested the workflow on 26 watersheds with a total area of 16,576 km2 in the Prairie Pothole Region. The results showed that the proposed method can not only delineate current wetland inundation status but also demonstrate wetland hydrological dynamics, such as wetland coalescence through fill-spill hydrological processes. Our automated algorithm provides a practical, reproducible, and scalable framework, which can be easily adapted to delineate wetland inundation dynamics at broad geographic scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiusheng Wua
- Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Charles R Lane
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Xuecao Li
- Department of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA
| | - Kaiguang Zhao
- Ohio Agricultural and Research Development Center, School of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ohio State University, Wooster, OH 44691, USA
| | - Yuyu Zhou
- Department of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA
| | - Nicholas Clinton
- Google, Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Pkwy, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - Ben DeVries
- Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Heather E Golden
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Megan W Lang
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Wetlands Inventory, Falls Church, VA 22041, USA
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36
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Phytoplankton blooms in Lake Winnipeg linked to selective water-gatekeeper connectivity. Sci Rep 2019; 9:8395. [PMID: 31182791 PMCID: PMC6557826 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-44717-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2018] [Accepted: 05/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Lake Winnipeg was coined “Canada’s sickest lake” and “the most threatened lake in the World” due to its recurrent algal blooms caused by nutrient-rich water inputs. While conceptual frameworks link bloom occurrence to hydrologic connectivity, data-based validation is lacking. We analyzed 355 multi-year satellite-derived images to quantify phytoplankton biomass in Lake Winnipeg and the timing of runoff activation and hydrologic connectivity in the Lake Winnipeg Watershed. Our analyses reveal that the majority of watershed runoff-producing areas exhibit a strong coupling between runoff activation and hydrologic connectivity: they are proximal to rivers and become hydrologically connected to them multiple times a year. Conversely, a smaller number of runoff-producing areas are located further upslope and connect to rivers much less frequently. The latter act as water gatekeepers by selectively enabling the downstream transfer of runoff from headwater regions. Major blooms in Lake Winnipeg only occur when 50% of the water gatekeepers enable headwater-downstream connectivity during 31.5% (or more) of the spring-fall period. We conclude that an explicit assessment of the timing of runoff activation and hydrologic connectivity serves as a predictor of bloom occurrence and provides new information about the influence of a small number of locations on Lake Winnipeg.
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Jones CN, Ameli A, Neff BP, Evenson GR, McLaughlin DL, Golden HE, Lane CR. Modeling Connectivity of Non-floodplain Wetlands: Insights, Approaches, and Recommendations. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION 2019; 55:559-577. [PMID: 34316250 PMCID: PMC8312621 DOI: 10.1111/1752-1688.12735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2018] [Accepted: 01/17/2019] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Representing hydrologic connectivity of non-floodplain wetlands (NFWs) to downstream waters in process-based models is an emerging challenge relevant to many research, regulatory, and management activities. We review four case studies that utilize process-based models developed to simulate NFW hydrology. Models range from a simple, lumped parameter model to a highly complex, fully distributed model. Across case studies, we highlight appropriate application of each model, emphasizing spatial scale, computational demands, process representation, and model limitations. We end with a synthesis of recommended "best modeling practices" to guide model application. These recommendations include: (1) clearly articulate modeling objectives, and revisit and adjust those objectives regularly; (2) develop a conceptualization of NFW connectivity using qualitative observations, empirical data, and process-based modeling; (3) select a model to represent NFW connectivity by balancing both modeling objectives and available resources; (4) use innovative techniques and data sources to validate and calibrate NFW connectivity simulations; and (5) clearly articulate the limits of the resulting NFW connectivity representation. Our review and synthesis of these case studies highlights modeling approaches that incorporate NFW connectivity, demonstrates tradeoffs in model selection, and ultimately provides actionable guidance for future model application and development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ali Ameli
- University of Maryland, School of Environment and Sustainability
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38
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Leigh C, Boersma KS, Galatowitsch ML, Milner VS, Stubbington R. Are all rivers equal? The role of education in attitudes towards temporary and perennial rivers. PEOPLE AND NATURE 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Leigh
- Australian Rivers Institute Griffith University Nathan Qld Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Mathematical & Statistical Frontiers (ACEMS) Australia
- Institute for Future Environments Queensland University of Technology Brisbane Qld Australia
- School of Mathematical Sciences, Science and Engineering Faculty Queensland University of Technology Brisbane Qld Australia
| | - Kate S. Boersma
- Department of Biology University of San Diego San Diego California
| | | | - Victoria S. Milner
- Department of Biological and Geographical Sciences University of Huddersfield Queensgate Huddersfield UK
| | - Rachel Stubbington
- School of Science and Technology Nottingham Trent University Nottingham UK
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39
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Mushet DM, Alexander LC, Bennett M, Schofield K, Christensen JR, Ali G, Pollard A, Fritz K, Lang MW. Differing Modes of Biotic Connectivity within Freshwater Ecosystem Mosaics. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION 2019; 55:307-317. [PMID: 31787838 PMCID: PMC6876646 DOI: 10.1111/1752-1688.12683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/29/2018] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
We describe a collection of aquatic and wetland habitats in an inland landscape, and their occurrence within a terrestrial matrix, as a "freshwater ecosystem mosaic" (FEM). Aquatic and wetland habitats in any FEM can vary widely, from permanently ponded lakes, to ephemerally ponded wetlands, to groundwater-fed springs, to flowing rivers and streams. The terrestrial matrix can also vary, including in its influence on flows of energy, materials, and organisms among ecosystems. Biota occurring in a specific region are adapted to the unique opportunities and challenges presented by spatial and temporal patterns of habitat types inherent to each FEM. To persist in any given landscape, most species move to recolonize habitats and maintain mixtures of genetic materials. Species also connect habitats through time if they possess needed morphological, physiological, or behavioral traits to persist in a habitat through periods of unfavorable environmental conditions. By examining key spatial and temporal patterns underlying FEMs, and species-specific adaptations to these patterns, a better understanding of the structural and functional connectivity of a landscape can be obtained. Fully including aquatic, wetland, and terrestrial habitats in FEMs facilitates adoption of the next generation of individual-based models that integrate the principles of population, community, and ecosystem ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- David M. Mushet
- Northern Prairie Wildlife Research CenterU.S. Geological SurveyJamestownNorth DakotaUSA
| | - Laurie C. Alexander
- Office of Research and DevelopmentU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWashingtonD.C.USA
| | - Micah Bennett
- Office of Research and DevelopmentU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWashingtonD.C.USA
| | - Kate Schofield
- Office of Research and DevelopmentU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWashingtonD.C.USA
| | - Jay R. Christensen
- Office of Research and DevelopmentU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyLas VegasNevadaUSA
| | - Genevieve Ali
- Department of Geological SciencesUniversity of ManitobaWinnipegManitobaCAN
| | - Amina Pollard
- Office of WaterU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWashingtonD.C.USA
| | - Ken Fritz
- Office of Research and DevelopmentU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyCincinnatiOhioUSA
| | - Megan W. Lang
- National Wetlands InventoryU.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceFalls ChurchVirginiaUSA
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Jensen CK, McGuire KJ, McLaughlin DL, Scott DT. Quantifying spatiotemporal variation in headwater stream length using flow intermittency sensors. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2019; 191:226. [PMID: 30887248 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-019-7373-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2019] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Scientists and policymakers increasingly recognize that headwater regions contain numerous temporary streams that expand and contract in length, but accurately mapping and modeling dynamic stream networks remain a challenge. Flow intermittency sensors offer a relatively new approach to characterize wet stream length dynamics at high spatial and temporal resolutions. We installed 51 flow intermittency sensors at an average spacing of 40 m along the stream network of a high-relief, headwater catchment (33 ha) in the Valley and Ridge of southwest Virginia. The sensors recorded the presence or absence of water every 15 min for 10 months. Calculations of the wet network proportion from sensor data aligned with those from field measurements, confirming the efficacy of flow intermittency sensors. The fine temporal scale of the sensor data showed hysteresis in wet stream length: the wet network proportion was up to 50% greater on the rising limb of storm events than on the falling limb for dry antecedent conditions, at times with a delay of several hours between the maximum wet proportion and peak runoff at the catchment outlet. Less stream length hysteresis was evident for larger storms with higher event and antecedent precipitation that resulted in peak runoff > 15 mm/day. To assess spatial controls on stream wetting and drying, we performed a correlation analysis between flow duration at the sensor locations and common topographic metrics used in stream network modeling. Topography did not fully explain spatial variation in flow duration along the stream network. However, entrenched valleys had longer periods of flow on the rising limbs of events than unconfined reaches. In addition, large upslope contributing areas corresponded to higher flow duration on falling limbs. Future applications that explore the magnitude and drivers of stream length variability may provide further insights into solute and runoff generation processes in headwater regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carrie K Jensen
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation (MC 0324), Cheatham Hall, RM 313, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA.
- Virginia Water Resources Research Center (MC 0444), Cheatham Hall, STE 210, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA.
| | - Kevin J McGuire
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation (MC 0324), Cheatham Hall, RM 313, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
- Virginia Water Resources Research Center (MC 0444), Cheatham Hall, STE 210, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Daniel L McLaughlin
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation (MC 0324), Cheatham Hall, RM 313, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
- Virginia Water Resources Research Center (MC 0444), Cheatham Hall, STE 210, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Durelle T Scott
- Department of Biological Systems Engineering (MC 0303), Seitz Hall, RM 202A, Virginia Tech, 155 Ag Quad Lane, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
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41
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Berhane TM, Costa H, Lane CR, Anenkhonov OA, Chepinoga VV, Autrey BC. The Influence of Region of Interest Heterogeneity on Classification Accuracy in Wetland Systems. REMOTE SENSING 2019; 11:551. [PMID: 33408881 PMCID: PMC7784669 DOI: 10.3390/rs11050551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Classifying and mapping natural systems such as wetlands using remote sensing frequently relies on data derived from regions of interest (ROIs), often acquired during field campaigns. ROIs tend to be heterogeneous in complex systems with a variety of land cover classes. However, traditional supervised image classification is predicated on pure single-class observations to train a classifier. This ultimately encourages end-users to create single-class ROIs, nudging ROIs away from field-based points or gerrymandering the ROI, which may produce ROIs unrepresentative of the landscape and potentially insert error into the classification. In this study, we explored WorldView-2 images and 228 field-based data points to define ROIs of varying heterogeneity levels in terms of class membership to classify and map 22 discrete classes in a large and complex wetland system. The goal was to include rather than avoid ROI heterogeneity and assess its impact on classification accuracy. Parametric and nonparametric classifiers were tested with ROI heterogeneity that varied from 7% to 100%. Heterogeneity was governed by ROI area, which we increased from the field-sampling frame of ~100 m2 nearly 19-fold to ~2124 m2. In general, overall accuracy (OA) tended downwards with increasing heterogeneity but stayed relatively high until extreme heterogeneity levels were reached. Moreover, the differences in OA were not statistically significant across several small-to-large heterogeneity levels. Per-class user's and producer's accuracies behaved similarly. Our findings suggest that ROI heterogeneity did not harm classification accuracy unless heterogeneity became extreme, and thus there are substantial practical advantages to accommodating heterogeneous ROIs in image classification. Rather than attempting to avoid ROI heterogeneity by gerrymandering, classification in wetland environments, as well as analyses of other complex environments, should embrace ROI heterogeneity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tedros M. Berhane
- Pegasus Technical Services, Inc., c/o U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45219, USA
| | - Hugo Costa
- Direção-Geral do Território, 1099-052 Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Charles R. Lane
- Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Oleg A. Anenkhonov
- Laboratory of Floristics and Geobotany, Institute of General and Experimental Biology SB RAS, Ulan-Ude 670047, Russia
| | - Victor V. Chepinoga
- Laboratory of Physical Geography and Biogeography, V.B. Sochava Institute of Geography SB RAS, Irkutsk 664033, Russia
- Department of Botany, Irkutsk State University, Irkutsk 664003, Russia
| | - Bradley C. Autrey
- Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
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42
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Yeo IY, Lee S, Lang MW, Yetemen O, McCarty GW, Sadeghi AM, Evenson G. Mapping landscape-level hydrological connectivity of headwater wetlands to downstream waters: A catchment modeling approach - Part 2. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 653:1557-1570. [PMID: 30527888 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2018] [Revised: 10/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/16/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
In Part 1 of this two-part manuscript series, we presented an effective assessment method for mapping inundation of geographically isolated wetlands (GIWs) and quantifying their cumulative landscape-scale hydrological connectivity with downstream waters using time series remotely sensed data (Yeo et al., 2018). This study suggested strong hydrological coupling between GIWs and downstream waters at the seasonal timescale via groundwater. This follow-on paper investigates the hydrological connectivity of GIWs with downstream waters and cumulative watershed-scale hydrological impacts over multiple time scales. Modifications were made to the representation of wetland processes within the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). A version of SWAT with improved wetland function, SWAT-WET, was applied to Greensboro Watershed, which is located in the Mid-Atlantic Region of USA, to simulate hydrological processes over 1985-2015 under two contrasting land use scenarios (i.e., presence and absence of GIWs). Comparative analysis of simulation outputs elucidated how GIWs could influence partitioning of precipitation between evapotranspiration (ET) and terrestrial water storage, and affect water transport mechanisms and routing processes that generate streamflow. Model results showed that GIWs influenced the watershed water budget and stream flow generation processes over the long-term (30 year), inter-annual, and monthly time scales. GIWs in the study watershed increased terrestrial water storage during the wet season, and buffered the dynamics of shallow groundwater during the dry season. The inter-annual modeling analysis illustrated that densely distributed GIWs can exert strong hydrological influence on downstream waters by regulating surface water runoff, while maintaining groundwater recharge and ET under changing (wetter) climate conditions. The study findings highlight the hydrological connectivity of GIWs with downstream waters and the cumulative hydrological influence of GIWs as hydrologic sources to downstream ecosystems through different runoff processes over multiple time scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- In-Young Yeo
- School of Engineering, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia; Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
| | - Sangchul Lee
- Department of Environmental Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA; US Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
| | - Megan W Lang
- Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Omer Yetemen
- School of Engineering, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
| | - Gregory W McCarty
- US Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
| | - Ali M Sadeghi
- US Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
| | - Grey Evenson
- Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
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43
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Hou G, Bi H, Yu X, Jia G, Wang D, Zhang Z, Liu Z. A vegetation configuration pattern with a high-efficiency purification ability for TN, TP, AN, AP, and COD based on comprehensive assessment results. Sci Rep 2019; 9:2427. [PMID: 30787320 PMCID: PMC6382793 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-38097-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2018] [Accepted: 12/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
To identify a vegetation configuration pattern with a high-efficiency purification ability for total nitrogen (TN), available nitrogen (AN), total phosphorous (TP), available phosphorous (AP), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) based on comprehensive assessment results, a water discharge experiment was performed in the Luan River in China with the following riparian forests: I, pure broad-leaved; II, mixed broad-leaved; III, mixed coniferous and broad-leaved; IV, mixed coniferous; and V, pure coniferous. From the riparian buffer zone to the river channel, the evaluation showed that pattern I had the highest purification ability at 1 m and 2 m; at a width of 4 m, pattern III had the highest purification ability; at a distance of 7 m, pattern V showed the highest purification ability; at 10 m, pattern IV showed the highest purification ability, pattern II the lowest. It is advisable to give priority to plant coniferous species from 0 m to 4 m from the river bank, while it is advisable to give priority to plant broad-leaved species from 4 m to 10 m from the river bank. We therefore recommend these vegetation configuration patterns in the development and management of runoff purification systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guirong Hou
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China.,Key Laboratory of State Forestry Administration on Soil and Water Conservation (Beijing Forestry University), 100083, Beijing, China
| | - Huaxing Bi
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China. .,Ji county station, Chinese National Ecosystem Research Network (CNERN), 100083, Beijing, China. .,Beijing Collaborative Innovation Center for Eco-environmental Improvement with Forestry and Fruit Trees, 102206, Beijing, China. .,Key Laboratory of State Forestry Administration on Soil and Water Conservation (Beijing Forestry University), 100083, Beijing, China. .,Beijing Engineering Research Center of Soil and Water Conservation, (Beijing Forestry University), Beijing, 100083, China.
| | - Xinxiao Yu
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China
| | - Guodong Jia
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China
| | - Dandan Wang
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China
| | - Zhenyao Zhang
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China
| | - Ziqiang Liu
- College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, 100083, Beijing, China
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Menéndez-Serra M, Triadó-Margarit X, Castañeda C, Herrero J, Casamayor EO. Microbial composition, potential functional roles and genetic novelty in gypsum-rich and hypersaline soils of Monegros and Gallocanta (Spain). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 650:343-353. [PMID: 30199680 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.09.050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2018] [Revised: 09/03/2018] [Accepted: 09/04/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Soil microbial communities (both Bacteria and Archaea) were studied after 16S rRNA genes massive sequencing in two hypersaline and gypsum-rich contrasted sites located in NE Spain. Soil microbial communities were also locally analysed according to environmental variables, including geological, physico-chemical, biogeochemically, and climatic data. Typical soil characteristics, climate data, and plant composition clearly split the two sites and major differences among the microbial communities for the areas were initially expected. Overall, high values of microbial species richness (up to 2300 taxa) and ecological diversity was detected in both sites. High genetic novelty levels were found mostly to environmental sequences, highlighting the high potential for microbiological studies. In contrast to the initial expectations, a substantial overlapping between Monegros and Gallocanta microbes was observed, indicating a high similarity despite of the geographical, botanical and environmental distances between sites, in agreement with both high dispersal and local selection inherent to the microbial world. The potential biogeochemical cycling showed small differences between sites, with presence of photosynthetic green and purple sulfur bacteria, cyanobacteria and aerobic and anaerobic chemolitotrophs. Potential for aerobic methane oxidation and anaerobic methanogenesis was observed in both sites, with predominance of potential nitrification mostly by ammonia-oxidizing archaea, nitrite oxidation and denitrification, and minor contribution for nitrate reduction and nitrate ammonification. The predicted functions based on the taxonomic composition showed high overlapping between the two studied regions, despite their difference in gypsum richness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mateu Menéndez-Serra
- Integrative Freshwater Ecology Group, Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), Acces Cala Sant Francesc 14, Blanes 17300, Spain
| | - Xavier Triadó-Margarit
- Integrative Freshwater Ecology Group, Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), Acces Cala Sant Francesc 14, Blanes 17300, Spain
| | - Carmen Castañeda
- Estación Experimental de Aula Dei (EEAD-CSIC), Av. Montañana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Juan Herrero
- Estación Experimental de Aula Dei (EEAD-CSIC), Av. Montañana 1005, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Emilio O Casamayor
- Integrative Freshwater Ecology Group, Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), Acces Cala Sant Francesc 14, Blanes 17300, Spain.
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45
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Salaria S, Howard R, Clare S, Creed IF. Incomplete recovery of plant diversity in restored prairie wetlands on agricultural landscapes. Restor Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.12890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Saloni Salaria
- Department of GeographyWestern University 1151 Richmond Street, London Ontario Canada N6A 5B7
| | - Renee Howard
- Department of BiologyWestern University 1151 Richmond Street, London Ontario Canada N6A 5B7
| | - Shari Clare
- Fiera Biological Consulting Ltd 301 10359‐82 Avenue, Edmonton Alberta Canada T6E 1Z9
| | - Irena F. Creed
- Department of GeographyWestern University 1151 Richmond Street, London Ontario Canada N6A 5B7
- Department of BiologyWestern University 1151 Richmond Street, London Ontario Canada N6A 5B7
- School of Environment and SustainabilityUniversity of Saskatchewan 323 Kirk Hall, 117 Science Place, Saskatoon Saskatchewan Canada S7N 5C8
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46
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Brazil's Native Vegetation Protection Law threatens to collapse pond functions. Perspect Ecol Conserv 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pecon.2018.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
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47
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Lee S, Yeo IY, Lang MW, Sadeghi AM, McCarty GW, Moglen GE, Evenson GR. Assessing the cumulative impacts of geographically isolated wetlands on watershed hydrology using the SWAT model coupled with improved wetland modules. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2018; 223:37-48. [PMID: 29886149 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2018] [Revised: 05/31/2018] [Accepted: 06/02/2018] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Despite recognizing the importance of wetlands in the Coastal Plain of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed (CBW) in terms of ecosystem services, our understanding of wetland functions has mostly been limited to individual wetlands and overall catchment-scale wetland functions have rarely been investigated. This study is aimed at assessing the cumulative impacts of wetlands on watershed hydrology for an agricultural watershed within the Coastal Plain of the CBW using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). We employed two improved wetland modules for enhanced representation of physical processes and spatial distribution of riparian wetlands (RWs) and geographically isolated wetlands (GIWs). This study focused on GIWs as their hydrological impacts on watershed hydrology are poorly understood and GIWs are poorly protected. Multiple wetland scenarios were prepared by removing all or portions of the baseline GIW condition indicated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetlands Inventory geospatial dataset. We further compared the impacts of GIWs and RWs on downstream flow (i.e., streamflow at the watershed outlet). Our simulation results showed that GIWs strongly influenced downstream flow by altering water transport mechanisms in upstream areas. Loss of all GIWs reduced both water routed to GIWs and water infiltrated into the soil through the bottom of GIWs, leading to an increase in surface runoff of 9% and a decrease in groundwater flow of 7% in upstream areas. These changes resulted in increased variability of downstream flow in response to extreme flow conditions. GIW loss also induced an increase in month to month variability of downstream flow and a decrease in the baseflow contribution to streamflow. Loss of all GIWs was shown to cause a greater fluctuation of downstream flow than loss of all RWs for this study site, due to a greater total water storage capacity of GIWs. Our findings indicate that GIWs play a significant role in controlling hydrological processes in upstream areas and downstream flow and, therefore, protecting GIWs is important for enhanced hydrological resilience to extreme flow conditions in this region.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Lee
- Department of Environmental Sciences and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA; USDA-ARS, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.
| | - I-Y Yeo
- School of Engineering, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia; Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - M W Lang
- Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA; Currently U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, National Wetlands Inventory, Falls Church, VA 22041, USA
| | - A M Sadeghi
- USDA-ARS, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
| | - G W McCarty
- USDA-ARS, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
| | - G E Moglen
- USDA-ARS, Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
| | - G R Evenson
- Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
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Evenson GR, Golden HE, Lane CR, McLaughlin DL, D'Amico E. Depressional wetlands affect watershed hydrological, biogeochemical, and ecological functions. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2018; 28:953-966. [PMID: 29437239 PMCID: PMC7724629 DOI: 10.1002/eap.1701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2017] [Revised: 10/24/2017] [Accepted: 01/08/2018] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Depressional wetlands of the extensive U.S. and Canadian Prairie Pothole Region afford numerous ecosystem processes that maintain healthy watershed functioning. However, these wetlands have been lost at a prodigious rate over past decades due to drainage for development, climate effects, and other causes. Options for management entities to protect the existing wetlands, and their functions, may focus on conserving wetlands based on spatial location vis-à-vis a floodplain or on size limitations (e.g., permitting smaller wetlands to be destroyed but not larger wetlands). Yet the effects of such management practices and the concomitant loss of depressional wetlands on watershed-scale hydrological, biogeochemical, and ecological functions are largely unknown. Using a hydrological model, we analyzed how different loss scenarios by wetland size and proximal location to the stream network affected watershed storage (i.e., inundation patterns and residence times), connectivity (i.e., streamflow contributing areas), and export (i.e., streamflow) in a large watershed in the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota, USA. Depressional wetlands store consequential amounts of precipitation and snowmelt. The loss of smaller depressional wetlands (<3.0 ha) substantially decreased landscape-scale inundation heterogeneity, total inundated area, and hydrological residence times. Larger wetlands act as hydrologic "gatekeepers," preventing surface runoff from reaching the stream network, and their modeled loss had a greater effect on streamflow due to changes in watershed connectivity and storage characteristics of larger wetlands. The wetland management scenario based on stream proximity (i.e., protecting wetlands 30 m and ~450 m from the stream) alone resulted in considerable landscape heterogeneity loss and decreased inundated area and residence times. With more snowmelt and precipitation available for runoff with wetland losses, contributing area increased across all loss scenarios. We additionally found that depressional wetlands attenuated peak flows; the probability of increased downstream flooding from wetland loss was also consistent across all loss scenarios. It is evident from this study that optimizing wetland management for one end goal (e.g., protection of large depressional wetlands for flood attenuation) over another (e.g., protecting of small depressional wetlands for biodiversity) may come at a cost for overall watershed hydrological, biogeochemical, and ecological resilience, functioning, and integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grey R Evenson
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
| | - Heather E Golden
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, National Exposure Research Laboratory, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45220, USA
| | - Charles R Lane
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, National Exposure Research Laboratory, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45220, USA
| | - Daniel L McLaughlin
- Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061, USA
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