Energy and water balance of two contrasting loblolly pine plantations on the lower coastal plain of North Carolina, USA

Sun, Ge; Noormets, Asko; Gavazzi, Michael; McNulty, Steven G.; Chen, Jiquan; Domec, Jean‐Christophe; King, John S.; Amatya, Devendra M.; Skaggs, R. W.

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2009.09.016

Cited by 175 publications

(157 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Consistent with an earlier analysis by Sun et al (2010) for the same sites and by Gholz and Clark (2002) for a similar landscape, ET values were lower at the early-rotation site than at the mid-rotation site regardless of the method used. The differences were amplified when soil water was less available, suggesting that climatic variability could mask the ET differences among stands at different succession stages.…”

Section: Evapotranspiration: Comparison Of Methodssupporting

confidence: 86%

A Comparison of Three Methods to Estimate Evapotranspiration in Two Contrasting Loblolly Pine Plantations: Age-Related Changes in Water Use and Drought Sensitivity of Evapotranspiration Components

Domec¹,

Sun²,

Noormets³

et al. 2012

Forest Science

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Increasing variability of rainfall patterns requires detailed understanding of the pathways of water loss from ecosystems to optimize carbon uptake and management choices. In the current study we characterized the usability of three alternative methods of different rigor for quantifying stand-level evapotranspiration (ET), partitioned ET into tree transpiration (T), understory transpiration, interception, and soil evaporation (E S ) and determined their sensitivity to drought, and evaluated the reliability of soil moisture measurements by taking into account deep soil moisture dynamic. The analyses were conducted in an early-and in a mid-rotation stand of loblolly pine, the predominant species of southern US forest plantations. The three alternative methods for estimating ET were the eddy covariance measurements of water vapor fluxes (ET EC ), the water table fluctuation (ET WT ), and the soil moisture fluctuation (ET SM ). On annual and monthly scales, the three methods agreed to within 10 -20%, whereas on a daily scale, the values of ET SM and ET EC differed by up to 50% and ET SM and ET WT differed by up to 100%. The differences between the methods were attributed to root water extraction below measurement depth and to the sampling at different spatial scales. Regardless of the method used, ET at the early-rotation site was 15-30% lower than that at the mid-rotation site. The dry years did not affect ET at the mid-rotation site but reduced significantly ET at the early-rotation site. Soil moisture trends revealed the importance of measuring water content at several depths throughout the rooting zone because less than 20% of the water is stored in the top 30 cm of soil. Annually, E S represented approximately 9 and 14% of ET EC at the mid-rotation site and the early-rotation site, respectively. At the mid-rotation site, T accounted for approximately 70% of ET EC . Canopy interception was estimated to be 5-10% of annual precipitation and 6 -13% of total ET EC . At the early-rotation site, T accounted for only 35% of ET EC . At this site, transpiration from subdominant trees and shrubs represented 40 -45% of ET EC , indicating that understory was a significant part of the water budget. We concluded that the eddy covariance method is best for estimating ET at the fine temporal scale (i.e., daily), but other soil moisture and water table-based methods were equally reliable and cost-effective for quantifying seasonal ET dynamics. FOR. SCI. 58(5):497-512.Keywords: eddy covariance, loblolly pine, Pinus taeda, sapflow, soil moisture probes, water table L OBLOLLY PINE (PINUS TAEDA L.) REPRESENTS ONE-HALF OF THE STANDING PINE VOLUME in the southern United States (11.7 million ha) and is by far the single most commercially important forest tree species for the region, with more than 1 billion seedlings planted annually (McKeand et al. 2003). More than 1 million ha of intensively managed loblolly pine plantations are found along the lower coastal plain in eastern North Carolina. Large areas of the North Carolina...

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Section: Evapotranspiration: Comparison Of Methodssupporting

confidence: 86%

A Comparison of Three Methods to Estimate Evapotranspiration in Two Contrasting Loblolly Pine Plantations: Age-Related Changes in Water Use and Drought Sensitivity of Evapotranspiration Components

Domec¹,

Sun²,

Noormets³

et al. 2012

Forest Science

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“…; ring porous xylem) [65]. The combination of shallow groundwater and high available energy in the Atlantic coastal plain region results in high ET rates [61]. At the FMNF, we have detected day-night signals in piezometers in the surficial aquifer and even within the upper portion of the Santee Limestone (Figure 8).…”

Section: Groundwater Extractionmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…In the absence of withdrawal by groundwater pumping, one can detect the forest demand for water through ET processes (Figure 8). Ecosystem demands for water use in the form of forest ET can be substantial (7 mm·d −1 for a forested site in coastal North Carolina, USA [61]). Figure 8 data were interpreted using a water table fluctuation method [62], providing an estimated 0.8 mm·d −1 or rather 8 m 3 ·d −1 per hectare ET demand from the water table aquifer (this water table fluctuation method accounts for the specific yield of the sediment).…”

Section: Groundwater Extractionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It follows that a larger fraction of the water balance would be available as surface and shallow-subsurface runoff to receiving waters (streams and riparian or depression wetlands), as well as infiltration and recharge to deeper groundwater systems. Data on ET fluxes from loblolly pine forests are well known [61,88], but information on longleaf pine is lacking. The effects on the forest condition in coastal areas from extreme events may be analogous, such as the immediate and also longer-term ecosystem changes following cyclones.…”

Section: Future Research Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Coastal Forests and Groundwater: Using Case Studies to Understand the Effects of Drivers and Stressors for Resource Management

2017

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Abstract:Forests are receiving more attention for the ecosystem goods and services they provide and the potential change agents that may affect forest health and productivity. Highlighting case examples from coastal forests in South Carolina, USA, we describe groundwater processes with respect to stressors and potential responses of a wetland-rich forested landscape, the roles that this area has served, and the need for water resource data to inform forest management decisions. Forested lands in the southeastern U.S. coastal plain provide a rich set of goods and services for the region, and in one case, the Francis Marion National Forest acts as a buffer to urbanization from the surrounding Charleston metropolitan area. Information from two decades of studies in the forested watersheds there may inform scientists and managers in other coastal forested systems. The common hydrological theme in this region, which has a higher average annual rainfall (1370 mm) than the annual potential evapotranspiration (PET = 1135 mm), is a shallow (<3 m) water table condition that supports a large range of natural wetlands and also creates management challenges across the region. Modest changes in the position of the water table can lead to either groundwater flooding and concomitant management challenges for forest services, or ecosystem stresses related to dry conditions in wetlands during times of below-normal precipitation or due to groundwater withdrawal. Development pressures have also stressed forest resources through the extraction of materials such as timber and sand mining, and the conversion to housing construction materials. These areas are also targeted for land development, to meet housing demands. In this paper, we discuss the role of groundwater in coastal forests and highlight opportunities for collaborative studies to better inform forest resource management.

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“…A comparison of albedo and net radiation measured for a mid-rotation (15-year-old) and young loblolly pine .1 A conceptual model describing the interactions of forests, climate, and streamflow at multiple scales (modified from Liu et al 2008Liu et al , 2010 forest shows that albedo and net ration fluctuate seasonal and change over time due to the climate variation and plant development resulting a decrease in albedo and an increase in net radiation ( Fig. 15.2) (Sun et al 2010). …”

Section: Albedomentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest Influences on Climate and Water Resources at the Landscape to Regional Scale

Sun

Liu

2013

Landscape Ecology for Sustainable Environment and Culture

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Although it is well known that climate controls the distribution, productivity and functioning of vegetation on earth, our knowledge about the role of forests in regulating regional climate and water resources is lacking. The studies on climate-forests feedbacks have received increasing attention from the climate change and ecohydrology research communities. The goal of this study is to provide an in-depth examination of forest-climate-water interactions by synthesizing recent scientific literature on the influences of forests on climate and water resources from watershed to regional scale. The synthesis paper provides a review of the state of art of our understanding of the mechanisms of interactions of forests and climate and water resources at the landscape and regional scale. The paper presents two case studies that examine the influences of forests on microclimate, watershed hydrology, and regional climate and water resources at a small watershed to region scale using literature from the Coweeta Hydrological Laboratory in the southeast U.S. and a simulation study on the North China Shelter Belt Project. Future research gaps were identified in terms of integrated Earth System modeling to guide forest management for global change mitigation and adaptation.

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Energy and water balance of two contrasting loblolly pine plantations on the lower coastal plain of North Carolina, USA

Cited by 175 publications

References 56 publications

A Comparison of Three Methods to Estimate Evapotranspiration in Two Contrasting Loblolly Pine Plantations: Age-Related Changes in Water Use and Drought Sensitivity of Evapotranspiration Components

A Comparison of Three Methods to Estimate Evapotranspiration in Two Contrasting Loblolly Pine Plantations: Age-Related Changes in Water Use and Drought Sensitivity of Evapotranspiration Components

Coastal Forests and Groundwater: Using Case Studies to Understand the Effects of Drivers and Stressors for Resource Management

Forest Influences on Climate and Water Resources at the Landscape to Regional Scale

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