This document summarizes the use of an enhanced hydro-ecological model called RHESSys to explore the interactions between climate change, precipitation patterns, topography, and forests in a New York City water supply watershed. The model was implemented for Biscuit Brook watershed. Model outputs such as streamflow and vegetation cover under different tree species scenarios are presented. Future work includes additional model calibration, expanding the scale of modeling, and using the model to investigate climate change impacts on Catskill forests.
DSD-INT 2017 Groundwater system analysis using isotope measurement data, San ...Deltares
Presentation by Cinthya Gómez Castro (Costa Rica) at the iMOD International User Day, during Delft Software Days - Edition 2017. Tuesday, 31 October 2017, Delft.
Presented by Birhanu Zemadim (IWMI) and Emily Schmidt (IFPRI) at the Nile Basin Development Challenge (NBDC) Science Workshop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 9–10 July 2013
II WORKSHOP INTERNACIONAL: GESTÃO SUSTENTÁVEL DE RECURSOS HÍDRICOS NA AGRICULTURA IRRIGADA:
Pesquisa, Políticas Públicas, Extensão Rural e Participação dos Agricultores do Nebraska, USA e do Oeste da Bahia, Brasil
AUDITÓRIO AIBA - BARREIRAS, BA
Application of GIS and MODFLOW to Ground Water Hydrology- A ReviewIJERA Editor
Groundwater is one of the most valuable natural resources, which supports human health, economic
development and ecological diversity. Due to over exploitation, the ground water systems are affected and
require management to maintain the conditions of ground water resources within acceptable limits. With the
development of computers and advances in information technology, efficient techniques for water management
has evolved. The main intent of the paper is to present a comprehensive review on application of GIS
(Geographic Information System) followed by coupling with MODFLOW package for ground water
management and development. Two major areas are discussed stating GIS applications in ground water
hydrology. (i) GIS based subsurface flow and pollution modelling (ii) Selection of artificial recharge sites.
Although the use of these techniques in groundwater studies has rapidly increased since last decade the sucess
rate is very limited. Based on this review , it is concluded that integation of GIS and MODFLOW have great
potential to revolutionize the monitoring and management of vital ground water resources in the future.
Objectives
- Assess types and densities of NA bacteria in diverse manures and manured soils
- Identify physico-chemical conditions that favor NA activity in soil and reduce N2O emissions
- Evaluate the impact of climate adaptive management practices (C addition, low disturbance) on GHG tradeoffs
Objective
Understand and quantify the nature of land-atmosphere interactions
- as they exist today
- as they may be modulated by the radiatively-driven component of climate change
- as they may evolve with changing land use
Land, soil and water management: Watershed management practices and hydrologi...ICRISAT
Improve smallholder agricultural productivity through sustainable intensification by managing water resources using a watershed approach. Studying the seasonal variations of water levels in shallow wells at land scale level, establishing new sets of monitoring stations and field experiments to study the dynamics of water availability and land cover changes, water balance modelling from farm to watershed scale and, regional climate change modelling.
This study explains the use of remote sensing data for spatially distributed hydrological modeling using the MIKE-SHE software used in Tarim River Basin CHINA
Presented by Charlotte MacAlister, Birhanu Zemadim, Teklu Erkossa, Amare Haileslassie, Dan Fuka, Tammo Steenhuis, Solomon Seyoum, Holger Hoff, Kinde Getnet, and Nancy Johnson to the Nile Basin Development ChallengeScience and Reflection Workshop, Addis Ababa, 4-6 May 2011
Numerical modeling in support of the characterization and remediation of impacted sediments can be a challenging task, particularly in environments where multiple physical processes influence sediment fate and transport. The interaction of various controls is particularly complex in estuarine settings, where riverine input, water levels, waves, and other coastal processes combine to create a seasonally dynamic environment. Modeling of such environments requires a comprehensive and integrated approach such that the effects of each process can be assessed individually, as these processes can be allowed to interact to reproduce the natural environment as faithfully as possible
Approach and Activities
This contribution describes the development and calibration of an integrated Delft3D numerical model that includes flow, sediment transport, wave processes, and vegetation. The model boundary conditions are based on data collected during a comprehensive field program. Field data were also used to calibrate various model input parameters (such as bed and vegetation roughness). The model was used to understand erosion and deposition during both low and high flow regimes, and thus to aid in understanding important controls on sedimentary dynamics during these predominant regimes.
Results and Lessons Learned
The integrated numerical model predictions capture important sedimentation, erosion, velocity, and water level patterns. Model predictions indicate that during periods of low riverine input, velocity patterns and sediment transport associated with periodic water level changes dominate. During riverine flood conditions flow and sedimentation patterns are controlled by the river itself. Integrated modeling of this setting, including calibration to field data provides a valuable tool for assessment of future conditions, and thus for remediating impacted sediments.
DSD-INT 2017 Groundwater system analysis using isotope measurement data, San ...Deltares
Presentation by Cinthya Gómez Castro (Costa Rica) at the iMOD International User Day, during Delft Software Days - Edition 2017. Tuesday, 31 October 2017, Delft.
Presented by Birhanu Zemadim (IWMI) and Emily Schmidt (IFPRI) at the Nile Basin Development Challenge (NBDC) Science Workshop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 9–10 July 2013
II WORKSHOP INTERNACIONAL: GESTÃO SUSTENTÁVEL DE RECURSOS HÍDRICOS NA AGRICULTURA IRRIGADA:
Pesquisa, Políticas Públicas, Extensão Rural e Participação dos Agricultores do Nebraska, USA e do Oeste da Bahia, Brasil
AUDITÓRIO AIBA - BARREIRAS, BA
Application of GIS and MODFLOW to Ground Water Hydrology- A ReviewIJERA Editor
Groundwater is one of the most valuable natural resources, which supports human health, economic
development and ecological diversity. Due to over exploitation, the ground water systems are affected and
require management to maintain the conditions of ground water resources within acceptable limits. With the
development of computers and advances in information technology, efficient techniques for water management
has evolved. The main intent of the paper is to present a comprehensive review on application of GIS
(Geographic Information System) followed by coupling with MODFLOW package for ground water
management and development. Two major areas are discussed stating GIS applications in ground water
hydrology. (i) GIS based subsurface flow and pollution modelling (ii) Selection of artificial recharge sites.
Although the use of these techniques in groundwater studies has rapidly increased since last decade the sucess
rate is very limited. Based on this review , it is concluded that integation of GIS and MODFLOW have great
potential to revolutionize the monitoring and management of vital ground water resources in the future.
Objectives
- Assess types and densities of NA bacteria in diverse manures and manured soils
- Identify physico-chemical conditions that favor NA activity in soil and reduce N2O emissions
- Evaluate the impact of climate adaptive management practices (C addition, low disturbance) on GHG tradeoffs
Objective
Understand and quantify the nature of land-atmosphere interactions
- as they exist today
- as they may be modulated by the radiatively-driven component of climate change
- as they may evolve with changing land use
Land, soil and water management: Watershed management practices and hydrologi...ICRISAT
Improve smallholder agricultural productivity through sustainable intensification by managing water resources using a watershed approach. Studying the seasonal variations of water levels in shallow wells at land scale level, establishing new sets of monitoring stations and field experiments to study the dynamics of water availability and land cover changes, water balance modelling from farm to watershed scale and, regional climate change modelling.
This study explains the use of remote sensing data for spatially distributed hydrological modeling using the MIKE-SHE software used in Tarim River Basin CHINA
Presented by Charlotte MacAlister, Birhanu Zemadim, Teklu Erkossa, Amare Haileslassie, Dan Fuka, Tammo Steenhuis, Solomon Seyoum, Holger Hoff, Kinde Getnet, and Nancy Johnson to the Nile Basin Development ChallengeScience and Reflection Workshop, Addis Ababa, 4-6 May 2011
Numerical modeling in support of the characterization and remediation of impacted sediments can be a challenging task, particularly in environments where multiple physical processes influence sediment fate and transport. The interaction of various controls is particularly complex in estuarine settings, where riverine input, water levels, waves, and other coastal processes combine to create a seasonally dynamic environment. Modeling of such environments requires a comprehensive and integrated approach such that the effects of each process can be assessed individually, as these processes can be allowed to interact to reproduce the natural environment as faithfully as possible
Approach and Activities
This contribution describes the development and calibration of an integrated Delft3D numerical model that includes flow, sediment transport, wave processes, and vegetation. The model boundary conditions are based on data collected during a comprehensive field program. Field data were also used to calibrate various model input parameters (such as bed and vegetation roughness). The model was used to understand erosion and deposition during both low and high flow regimes, and thus to aid in understanding important controls on sedimentary dynamics during these predominant regimes.
Results and Lessons Learned
The integrated numerical model predictions capture important sedimentation, erosion, velocity, and water level patterns. Model predictions indicate that during periods of low riverine input, velocity patterns and sediment transport associated with periodic water level changes dominate. During riverine flood conditions flow and sedimentation patterns are controlled by the river itself. Integrated modeling of this setting, including calibration to field data provides a valuable tool for assessment of future conditions, and thus for remediating impacted sediments.
Drought monitoring, Precipitation statistics, and water balance with freely a...AngelosAlamanos
The aim of this study is to showcase and discuss these new technologies for hydrometeorological studies. Six of NASA’s web-repositories that can be used to freely download and
visualise such spatial and/or time-series factors are listed and explained with examples for Ireland: ways
to access hydrological, meteorological, soil, vegetation and socio-economic data are shown, and
estimations of various precipitations statistics, anomalies, and water balance are presented for monthly
and seasonal analyses. The advantages, disadvantages and limitations of the satellite datasets are
discussed to provide useful recommendations about their proper use, based on purpose, scale, precision,
time requirement, and modelling-expansion criteria.
Planning for water sensitive communities: the need for a bottom up systems ap...Michael Barry
This paper was prepared by myself and Dr Peter Coombes of Urban Water Cycle Solutions and accepted under peer review for inclusion in the WSUD 2018 conference in Perth, February 2018. It describes how the use of top down average potable water demands in network analyses can generate unreliable predictions of water security and water distribution patterns. In contrast, the use of highly resolved bottom up analysis is shown to produce robust outcomes that can reliably inform the future management of our water resources.
Development of a Field-Scale Research Facility to Assess the Effects of Sea L...RachelMordovancey
This project encapsulated engineering and ecological design to develop a site for a sea level rise research facility in the Santee Experimental Forest in Huger, SC.
1. An enhanced hydro-ecological model (RHESSys) to
explore climate change interactions between
precipitation patterns, topography and forests in a
New York City water supply watershed
Antoine L. Randolph1,3, Lawrence E. Band1, Christina L.
Tague2, Matthew B. Dickinson4, Elliot M. Schneiderman5
1 University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Department of Geography
2 University of California Santa Barbara, Bren School of Environmental Science
3 CUNY Institute for Sustainable Cities, Hunter College
4 U.S Forest Service Northeast Research Station, Delaware OH
5 New York City Environmental Protection, Mapping and Modeling
Watershed/Tifft Science and Technical Symposium, 18-19 September 2013, West Point New York
2. 2
Presentation Outline
• Hydro-ecological models as management tools
• A brief overview of RHESSys
• Enhancements to the baseline version of RHESSys
• Implementation of RHESSys for Biscuit Brook
• Examples of Biscuit Brook model output
• Future research and development
3. Hydro-ecological models as management tools
tools
3
• Can be used to forecast the potential impacts of climate
change on forest structure and composition:
– changes in the frequency of extreme weather events
• wind damage, ice damage, flooding
– canopy damage
– change in precipitation patterns
• increased stress
– greater susceptibility to insects and pathogens
– decrease in the viability of seed
– changes in the distribution of tree species
» habitat loss
» loss of commercially important tree species
• Changes in forest cover can affect the quantity and quality
of stream flow
– increased erosion, turbidity and nutrient loading
– changes in the spatial and temporal availability of water
8. Vegetation modeling
8
Tree dimensions define zones of influence for each species, within
which the characteristics of the tree modify local microclimate. Canopy
dominant trees function as “Keystone species.”
9. RHESSys modeling enhancements (highlights)
• explicit modeling of tree species
– leaf C/N ratio, specific leaf area, environmental tolerances,
dynamic leaf phenology
• explicit modeling of tree growth and dimensions
– trunk diameter, height growth curve, rooting depth, bark
thickness, crown base height, stem counts, basal area
• addition of a litter layer structure
– L, F and H litter layer depths and moisture
– transpiration from the H layer and mineral soil
• implementation of fire modeling
– fire spread based on Rothermel’s mathematical model
– fire mortality based on bark thickness
9
12. Overview of RHESSys worldfile creation
12
Time series for minimum temperature, maximum temperature and daily
precipitation are the minimum required climatic inputs. Soil and vegetation
characteristics are specified via parameter definition (*.def) files. The GIS-
based preprocessing step allows broad flexibility in partitioning the
landscape (i.e., basins, hillslopes, micro-climatic zones, landscape
patches).
15. Model Calibration
• hydrological calibration
– modeled stream flow vs. actual stream flow data
– modeled soil moisture vs. actual soil moisture data
– modeled evapo-trans vs. actual evapo-trans data
• vegetation calibration
– modeled height or DBH growth vs. actual growth
– modeled leaf area index vs. actual leaf area index
– modeled basal area per hectare vs. actual basal area
– modeled biomass accumulation vs. actual accumulation
• snow pack calibration (under development)
15
22. Terrain analysis example 1
22
The western portion of the ridgeline and upslope region of Biscuit Brook
with 2m contours. Steep outcrops surrounding relatively flatter terrain is
prominent at this location, as indicated by the outlined areas.
23. Terrain analysis example 2
23
Overlay of wetness index and the derived stream network (blue lines) suggests that
low lying upslope areas (i.e., shelves) are often at the source of 1st order streams.
Alternating soggy and dry conditions could lead to nutrient loading in 1st order
streams, depending on vegetation type and status.
25. Modeled Snow Pack SWE example 1
25
March 1999: spatial variability in
mean monthly snow pack SWE
is high but the mean monthly
SWE quantity is low.
snow water equivalent (SWE) mm
26. Modeled Snow Pack SWE example 2
26
Jan 1999: spatial variability in
mean monthly snow pack SWE
is low but the mean monthly
SWE quantity is high.
snow water equivalent (SWE) mm
27. Summary/Conclusions
• Take Home Messages
– Simulations are sensitive to species
– Simulations are sensitive to precipitation pattern
– Spatially adjusted snow modeling output
• individual components of snow pack loss
• Future Work
– Add additional local tree species
– Model calibration
– Expand scale of modeling (e.g., Neversink basin)
– Use the calibrated model to investigate the effects of
climate change on Catskill forests
27
28. Acknowledgements
Thanks to my fellow CUNY postdocs for their
encouragement and expertise.
Thanks to DEP Modeling Group staff for their
feedback and help finding necessary data.
Special thanks to Larry Band for his continued
support and guidance
28
Editor's Notes
Good morning. My name is Antoine Randolph. I am CUNY research associate working with the DEP Modeling unit in Kingston. My focus is hydro-ecological modeling of forested watersheds. Today I’ll be presenting an overview of my research and it’s application to DEP water management in the context of climate change.
Here is the outline of what I’ll be covering today.
One of the many unknowns cornering the potential impacts of climate change is how forests will respond. Climate, landscape vegetation interactions are very complex. Hydro-ecological models such as RHESSys can help us to identify potential consequences of climate change and to assess the broader impacts.
RHESSys was developed in the early 1990s by adding a spatially explicit landscape and the MT-CLIM micro-climate model to the existing FOREST-BGC framework. RHESSys is a model of intermediate complexity that utilizes a daily time step and models forests on a multi-decadal temporal scale.