This document summarizes Luis Caballero's work studying watershed hydrology in Honduras. It discusses his research at La Tigra National Park measuring water production from cloud forests compared to other forested areas. Cloud forests produced three times as much water. Cutting cloud forest would likely reduce dry season water supplies. The document also discusses agricultural adaptation projects in El Salvador's dry corridor, including using soil/water techniques to increase on-farm water balances and demonstrating more resilient cropping systems.

1. Luis Caballero, PhD
Associate Professor Watershed Sciences and Hydrology
Zamorano University, Honduras (1993-2013)

2. Humuya Bosque
latifoliado
Río Nacaome Río CholutecaSan Lucas
Tela
La Ceiba
Hydrology of Honduras, two different
scenarios

3. Background
• Honduras and La Tigra National Park
• The importance in terms of water
• The problems
• The study
– Motivations
– Objectives
– Methodology (site and instrumentation)
– Results and discussion
– Conclusions

4. The study
motivation
• To protect NR effectively,
society needs to value them
• In developing countries there
is lack of data, information
and basic knowledge.
• We, usually, do not protect
what we don’t know.
• Bridging hydrologic science
with economic analysis to
foster good land and
environmental policies.
• Water is a critical resource
for both, drinking and food
security
National parks are important areas for
present and future generation
We all heard a lot a about biodiversity
scenic values, carbon sequestration,
logging, etc.
But, we heart much less, in the recent
pass, about the most important
resource:
Water
If we protect for water, most of the
other resources would be
protected too.
“La Tigra National have been
studied extensively, but not its
water production potential” Why?

5. The problems within and outside the park
When water production clashes with other space uses
Agriculture
Fuel wood
Urbanization
Hunting/Mining
Conflicting interests

6. Material and Methods

7. La Tigra Experimental Watershed, Honduras
Cornell/Zamorano University
Funding: CANON-NP/OAS/ Cornell/CSS
Documents and Settingslac76DesktopLuis BackupDesktopGIS Data La
TigraDeforested Area 2.kmz

10. Weir WS4
Weir WS2
Weir WS1
Weir WS3Final outlet
Streamflow data and water samples collection

11. Simple past digital filter similar to one proposed by Lyne and
Hollick (1979) and Nathan and McMahon (1990).
where:
QT(t) = Total observed streamflow at time step t
QB(t) = filtered baseflow at time step t
QP(t-1) = calculated runoff at time step t-1
If QT(t) = QT(t-1) then runoff = 0 and total streamflow = baseflow
If QT(t) > QT(t-1) then runoff > 0 and equation 2 and 3 applies for every
time step.
Hydrograph separation:
1.
2.
3.

12. The modeling approach
Conceptual approach Parameters
Figure 4: Schematic representation for saturation excess
overland flow, infiltration, interflow and baseflow for a
characteristic hill slopes (Steenhuis et al., 2009)

13. Runoff Producing Areas
Modeling approach
Selecting model parameters,
a view from the field
Exposed bedrock areas
Saturated areas

14. Results:
Climate-hydrology

15. Precipitation: How much and how
variable?
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Precipitation(mm/month)
Month
2008
2009
Zamorano mean
La Tigra mean

16. Precipitation: How much and how variable?
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
6/10/2009 6/25/2009 7/10/2009 7/25/2009 8/9/2009 8/24/2009
CummulativeP(mm)
Date
Cumulative rainfall amount influenced by
convective storms events
(June 10-August 27-2009)
1800 m.a.s.l. = 402 mm
1450 m.a.s.l. = 299 mm
1350 m.a.s.l. = 515 mm

17. Precipitation: How much and how
variable?
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
9/10/2008 9/20/2008 9/30/2008 10/10/2008
Precipitation(mm)
Date
Cumulative rainfall for three rain gauges influenced by frontal system
(9/10/08 through 10/16/08)
1350 m.a.s.l. = 321 mm
1450 m.a.s.l = 344 mm
1800 m.a.s.l = 343 mm

18. Precipitación characteristics

19. Figure 2.5. Rainfall-runoff relationship for 29 precipitation events
measured at WS1 during one year (October 2008 to October 2009.
Rainfall-runoff relationships

20. Figure 2.6. Baseflow recession during the dry season
(March-May, 2009) ). Solid line regression.
Baseflow recession

21. Water balance

22. Modeling Objective
• To test if the model is able to simulate
the observed runoff hydrograph from a
cloud forest and other forested areas in
Honduras, and then use the model to
infer differences in hydrologic behavior
between cloud forests and non-cloud
forest watersheds.

23. Figure 4.2a. Comparison between observed and modelled daily flows for WS1
For a set of parameters (Tables 4.2 and 4.3)
RESULTS

24. Figure 4.3a. Comparison between daily observed and modelled stremflow for WS1 with various
set of parameters (listed in table 4.2 and 4.3.

25. Figure 4.2d. Comparison between observed and modeled daily flow for
WS4 catchment. For various set of parameters listed in table 4.2 and 4.3.

26. Figura 4.3d. Comparison between daily observed and modelled stremflow
for WS4 with various set of parameters (listed in table 4.2 and 4.3)

28. Conclusions:
• Three times as much water was produced by the
large cloud forest watershed compared to the
smaller forested watersheds
• Rainfall intensity was generally low and less than
the infiltration capacity of the soil.
• Surface runoff is likely produced from the
saturated and rock outcrop areas(less than 10%)
• At least 90% of falling rainfall infiltrates the soil
profile and/or is intercepted by the plant canopy

29. Conclusions:
• Cutting down more cloud forest will likely dry up
springs and decline the amount of water during
the dry season when it most needed for drinking
water
• With our current data, it is not possible to
determine how much discharge comes from
saturated areas and how much from interflow.
This two water sources are interconnected,
highlighting the difficulty to accurately and un-
ambiguously account for each separately.

30. Why this findings are so important?
Hydrology of cloudforest was unknown.
Cloudforest are major sources of water supply to
rural communities in C.A.
Good climate, rich O.M. and humid environments
good for Agriculture/pasture.
Traditionally, convincing policy and decision makers
to protect NR is a not easy.
But, sound science and practical knowledge can
make a difference, so does education of the public.
We hope our little contribution in knowledge can
incentive future work.
It is not about the cloudforest itself, these areas, are the headwater
for major rivers, thus critical for hydro-energy, food production and
water supply for densely populated urban centers

31. II Part:
Agricultural adaptation to
climate change

32. Map of target areas

33. Project Aproaches
• Territorial approach.
– Focus en watershed processes and systems: selecting
farms that could be affected or benefit by lack or
excess of water in the catchment.
– Concentrate investments to establish a “farmer school
for climate adaptation” or “demonstration farms”.
– Support the implementation of climate adaptation
practices on neighboring farms (education and
training, testing drought resistant varieties, new
crops, etc.)
• Social and institutional approach

34. Ozatlan group: Lead farmer,
Sr. Odilio Amaya
Strategy: Increase water balance in the
farm.
• Implement soil and water conservation practices to
increase infiltration and reduce soil erosion.
• Plant different options of life barriers to reduce
sedimentation on the ditches.
• Build on farm water conservation structures to capture
runoff
• Harvest runoff water from a nearby dry creek, and divert
it to the demonstration plot.
• Diversify crops to minimize impact of draught on farm
income.
• Promote improved drought resistant varieties

35. a. Utilize different types life barriers, to protect water
conservation ditches.
b. Divert runoff water from nearby dry creek and conserve it
in a earth pond.

36. Harvesting runoff from microcatments and house roofs tops Transport to infiltration ditches
While conducting excess water to other
ditches downhill in a zigzag shape
To increase on farm water balance
and soil water supply for crops
Building capacity for a more climate resilience agriculture in the dry corridor of
central America, Ozatlán, Usulután, El Salvador
ENGILITY/IRG
Allowing for more
residence time in
the farms
Farmers school methodology: Practical and conceptual approach
Increased crop resilience to
droughts and improved food
security in rural families
Luis A. Caballero, PhD.
Associate professor Watershed Sciences and Hydrology, Zamorano University

37. In Ozatlan farmer´s school Ing. Albino Peñate shows soil and water practices and crop
diversification, among them: Loroco flower (to make pupusas), maracuya (to make
drinks), drought resistant corn, and fruit trees.

38. Totogalpa group: Marcial Diaz farm
Strategy: Increase water access and promote more
efficient use.
• Collect runoff passing through his farm, to increase
residence time to recharge water table.
• Improved access water through building a hand-dug well
• Improved irrigation through a drip irrigation plot, used as
demonstration plot.
• Improved soil and water management practices to
conserve soil and water, leading to more resilient
cropping systems.
• Training and income generation, as a group, to invest on
their owns farms.

39. Actions to establish a farmer school
a. A cropping plot under high water efficiency (drip irrigation)
b. A hand dug well to increase water supply during dry period (cost sharing).

40. c. A water detention pond to increase water table recharge above the hand-dug well
d. A water harvesting pond to increase water supply during short term droughts

41. Actions to establish a farmer school
Water harvesting pond
Drip irrigation training plot

42. 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
6/19/05
6/20/05
6/21/05
6/22/05
6/23/05
6/24/05
6/25/05
6/26/05
6/27/05
6/28/05
6/29/05
6/30/05
Tiempo (Días)
Caudal(l/s)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Precipitación(mm)
Precipitación Caudal
Capiro-Zapotillo paired experimental watersheds, Zamorano Honduras
(early steps in watershed hydrology research)

43. Acknowledgments:
1. Zamorano University watershed team 1996-2012
2. Cornell University, Ithaca New York, USA.
3. American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS-US National Park
Service/The Canon Company
4. The Organization of American Sates (OAS)
3. Field research support from CATIE, AMITIGRA and the Municipality of Valle de Angeles
5. USAID for its continued support over the last 25 years of profesional development
Luis A. Caballero Bonilla, PhD
Soil and Water Enginiering
Independent consultant water resources/watersheds and climate adaptation
2025 Overlook Drive, Fort Collins Co. 80526
E-mail: lac76@cornell.edu
Phone: (970) 631-8187
http://soilandwater.bee.cornell.edu/publications/caballero-thesis2012.pdf
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1752-1688.2012.00668.x/abstract
http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/johh.2013.61.issue-1/jhh-2013-0003/jhh-2013-0003.xml

44. Thanks
Gracias