Continental mapping of groundwater dependent ecosystems: A methodological framework to integrate diverse data and expert opinion

Doody, Tanya M.; Barron, Olga; Dowsley, Kate; Emelyanova, Irina; Fawcett, Jon; Overton, Ian; Pritchard, Jodie; Dijk, Albert I. J. M. van; Warren, Garth

doi:10.1016/j.ejrh.2017.01.003

Cited by 56 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…This is also consistent with earlier model-based findings of sizable groundwater-supplied evapotranspiration in the semiarid regions globally [Koirala et al, 2014] as well as those in seasonally dry northern high-latitude regions [Cohen et al, 2006] and regions with higher probability of using nonprecipitation moisture sources in Australia [Doody et al, 2017]. The positive relationship prevails in~36% of the vegetated area, located primarily in the Indian subcontinent, sub-Saharan Sahel regions, semiarid regions of eastern and southern Africa, noncoastal regions of southern and eastern Australia (in and around Lake Eyre basin), Eurasian midlatitudes, and northern parts of North America.…”

Section: Global Distribution Of Gpp-wtd Correlationsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…In most of these regions with typically limited moisture supply, groundwater is likely supporting primary productivity through enhanced soil moisture availability. This is also consistent with earlier model-based findings of sizable groundwater-supplied evapotranspiration in the semiarid regions globally [Koirala et al, 2014] as well as those in seasonally dry northern high-latitude regions [Cohen et al, 2006] and regions with higher probability of using nonprecipitation moisture sources in Australia [Doody et al, 2017].…”

Section: Global Distribution Of Gpp-wtd Correlationsupporting

confidence: 92%

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Global distribution of groundwater‐vegetation spatial covariation

Koirala

Jung

Reichstein

et al. 2017

Geophysical Research Letters

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Groundwater is an integral component of the water cycle, and it also influences the carbon cycle by supplying moisture to ecosystems. However, the extent and determinants of groundwater‐vegetation interactions are poorly understood at the global scale. Using several high‐resolution data products, we show that the spatial patterns of ecosystem gross primary productivity and groundwater table depth are correlated during at least one season in more than two thirds of the global vegetated area. Positive relationships, i.e., larger productivity under shallower groundwater table, predominate in moisture‐limited dry to mesic conditions with herbaceous and shrub vegetation. Negative relationships, i.e., larger productivity under deeper groundwater, predominate in humid climates with forests, possibly indicating a drawdown of groundwater table due to substantial ecosystem water use. Interestingly, these opposite groundwater‐vegetation interactions are primarily associated with differences in vegetation than with climate and surface characteristics. These findings put forth the first evidence, and a need for better representation, of extensive and non‐negligible groundwater‐vegetation interactions at the global scale.

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Section: Global Distribution Of Gpp-wtd Correlationsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Global Distribution Of Gpp-wtd Correlationsupporting

confidence: 92%

Global distribution of groundwater‐vegetation spatial covariation

Koirala

Jung

Reichstein

et al. 2017

Geophysical Research Letters

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“…This resulted in a concerning increase of groundwater abstraction for irrigation purposes (10-fold increase over the past 50 years) [76]. However, groundwater management in rural areas also concerns land reclamation and drainage [77,78] and the protection of groundwater-dependent ecosystems [79,80]. FREEWAT was applied at three case studies to deal with this theme in Ukraine, Italy, and Estonia.…”

Section: Rural Water Management and Protection Of Groundwater-dependementioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial Data Management and Numerical Modelling: Demonstrating the Application of the QGIS-Integrated FREEWAT Platform at 13 Case Studies for Tackling Groundwater Resource Management

Filippis

Pouliaris

Kahuda

et al. 2019

Water

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Because of the spatial nature of groundwater-related data and their time component, effective groundwater management requires the application of methods pertaining to the Information and Communication Technologies sector, such as spatial data management and distributed numerical modelling. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the effectiveness of the QGIS-integrated FREEWAT platform and an approach combining spatial data management and numerical models to target groundwater management issues. FREEWAT is a free and open source platform integrated in a Geographic Information System environment and embedding tools for pre-and post-processing of Water 2020, 12, 41 2 of 31 spatial data and integrating numerical codes for the simulation of the hydrological cycle, with a main focus on groundwater. To this aim, this paper briefly presents the FREEWAT platform, introduces the FREEWAT approach, and showcases 13 case studies in European and non-European countries where the FREEWAT platform was applied. Application of the FREEWAT platform to real-world case studies is presented for targeting management of coastal aquifers, ground-and surface-water interaction, climate change impacts, management of transboundary aquifers, rural water management and protection of groundwater-dependent ecosystems. In this sense, compared to other existing software suites, FREEWAT allows data analysis and visualization to accomplish each step of the modelling workflow, i.e., from data analytics, to conceptual model definition, to numerical modelling and reporting of results. The presented experiences demonstrate that improved access to data and the portability of models and models' results can help to promote water sustainability from the localto the basin-scale. Furthermore, FREEWAT may represent a valuable tool to target the objective of increasing the capabilities of public authorities and private companies to manage groundwater resources by means of up-to-date, robust, well-documented and reliable software, without entailing the need of costly licensing, nowadays seldom affordable by public water authorities. Based on the strengths highlighted, the FREEWAT platform is a powerful tool for groundwater resources management, and for data collection, sharing, implementation and comparison of scenarios, for supporting planning and decision-making.

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“…However, large‐scale GDE zones are difficult to map by applying these ecohydrological models. Remote sensing products, such as leaf area index, normalized difference vegetation index, and gross primary productivity, are suitable to map GDE zones over a large scale (Doody et al, ; Koirala et al, ; Pérez Hoyos et al, ). Nevertheless, reliable diagnostic criteria must be designed for identifying the groundwater‐vegetation interactions, which accommodate for the difference in time between the phenological (e.g., season of growth) and hydrological maximum (e.g., seasonal variation in the level of the water table or streamflow).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of Groundwater in the Dryland Ecohydrological System: A Case Study of the Heihe River Basin

et al. 2018

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Groundwater sustains food production and ecosystem health in drylands. Groundwater influences the interlinked hydrological processes and ecological state; however, the function of groundwater in the ecohydrological system is yet to be quantified clearly. In this study, we assess the role of groundwater in the ecohydrological system of the Heihe River Basin, using a regional-scale integrated model with multiple independent databases. Our results show that first, in over 40% of mid-lower plain, the groundwater table is less than 10 m deep, and both recharge and evaporation of groundwater dominate seasonal water budget variations; recharge is more affected by land use than groundwater evaporation, and it has a higher variability ranging over 2 orders of magnitude within vegetated land use type. Second, mountain block recharge maintains the piedmont groundwater; the upper mountainous partition between baseflow and mountain block recharge impacts the evaporation and two-way exchange between groundwater and stream/lake in the downstream alluvial plain. Third, the groundwater system stores over 50% of streamflow in the dry season and about 10% in the wet season along leakage segments; groundwater dominates the streams by contributing about 40% of streamflow in the dry season along the seepage segments of the middle alluvial plain. Fourth, shallow groundwater sustains a vibrant ecosystem directly by providing a stable source of water for vegetation and indirectly by buffering lateral groundwater flow. Our study not only bridges the quantification gap for regional studies of drylands but also provides suggestions on water management and future water sustainability and food security.

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Continental mapping of groundwater dependent ecosystems: A methodological framework to integrate diverse data and expert opinion

Cited by 56 publications

References 44 publications

Global distribution of groundwater‐vegetation spatial covariation

Global distribution of groundwater‐vegetation spatial covariation

Spatial Data Management and Numerical Modelling: Demonstrating the Application of the QGIS-Integrated FREEWAT Platform at 13 Case Studies for Tackling Groundwater Resource Management

Role of Groundwater in the Dryland Ecohydrological System: A Case Study of the Heihe River Basin

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