Implications of observed changes in high mountain snow water storage, snowmelt timing and melt window

Elias, Emile; James, Darren; Heimel, Sierra; Steele, C. M.; Steltzer, Heidi; Dott, Cynthia E.

doi:10.1016/j.ejrh.2021.100799

Cited by 13 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…The component of hydrologic drought that most favoured tamarisk establishment was the extremely low summer base flows; the other signal of drought in river systems, a decline in spring peak flows, did not favour tamarisk. In a period of drier climatic conditions and smaller snowpacks (Elias et al, 2021; Udall & Overpeck, 2017), those ideal ‘first river’ conditions seem unlikely to be replicated. By the early 1990s, after completion of the dam and more irrigation systems coming online, the open bars and channel margins that had previously been created and maintained by spring floods became increasingly vegetated, leading to channel narrowing (Figures 2 & 4).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A tale of two rivers: Dam‐induced hydrologic drought on the lower Dolores River and its impact on tamarisk establishment

et al. 2022

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The effects of river regulation on the flow patterns of rivers in western North America often mimic the impacts of naturally occurring episodic drought. On the Dolores River in southwestern Colorado, two distinct periods of flow modification have occurred, with very different drought‐like consequences for downstream habitat. The first period of major irrigation diversions (1889–1984) led to extreme low flows during the summer months with little change to spring peak flows. The second period after dam construction (1984 to present) caused a decline in peak flows but an increase in summer minimum flows. We studied the role of these different flow regimes in promoting the recruitment of non‐native tamarisk, since understanding historic patterns of recruitment may inform current and future flow management. We used dendrochronology to determine tamarisk establishment dates and tested the connection between establishment years and a suite of hydroclimatic variables. Tamarisk recruitment occurred between 1952 and 2002, with 92% of trees establishing during the first flow diversion period. The strongest hydroclimate predictor was low minimum flow for a given year, especially when coupled with higher peak flows in the year of, or before, establishment. Almost no tamarisk recruitment has occurred in the second, dam‐controlled period, where lowered peak flows and elevated minimum flows prevail. In spite of the drought tolerance of tamarisk, drought‐like conditions below this dam did not promote its invasion. Instead, the combination of lowered peaks but increased summer baseflows post‐dam has driven channel narrowing and vegetation encroachment by native willows. What current and future meteorologic drought conditions, coupled with dam‐controlled flows, will bring to the channel and adjacent riparian vegetation is uncertain, but this work may help to forecast the impacts of future river flows on riparian vegetation community evolution.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A tale of two rivers: Dam‐induced hydrologic drought on the lower Dolores River and its impact on tamarisk establishment

et al. 2022

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“…Spatial variation in the stable isotopic composition of hydrogen and oxygen in precipitation and river water is a direct cause of spatial variation in the recharge sources of runoff (James & Roulet, 2009; Pant et al, 2021). The spatial variation within the basin does not only exert an influence on the composition of runoff by a single factor, but also by the synthesis of different elevational environments, evapotranspiration processes and meteorological conditions on the composition of runoff (Elias et al, 2021; Gao et al, 2021; Gulev et al, 2021). Numerous studies have shown a significant correlation between the isotopic composition of precipitation and altitude, temperature and precipitation (Jeelani & Deshpande, 2017; Rumsey et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial variability of runoff recharge sources and influence mechanisms in an arid mountain flow‐producing zone

Sang

Zhu

Qiu

et al. 2022

Hydrological Processes

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In‐depth knowledge of the hydrological conditions of basins in arid regions can help to maintain the long‐term water security. The mechanisms of runoff generation and flow paths in different landscape areas are not fully known due to spatial variability. We have explored the mechanisms by which spatial variability affects the runoff recharge sources in the Xiying River Basin. The results showed that the spatial variability of the sources and generation mechanisms of runoff in the arid mountain flow‐producing zone is the result of the combined effect of different landscape, elevation and meteorological elements. In the upstream area, the short mean transit time (MTT) combined with the high contribution of recharge from the meltwater (29.32%) and the proportion of pre‐event water (between 60% and 90%) means that runoff production processes are strongly controlled by meltwater recharge and precipitation events. The MTT and the proportion of pre‐event water in the midstream area are ranked in the middle of the three landscape areas, but the highest contribution of precipitation (16.57%) indicates the importance of precipitation to runoff production processes. In the downstream area, the MTT is the longest and the proportion of pre‐event water is the smallest, and groundwater remains the basis for long‐term stability of runoff (groundwater contribution rate: 40.62%). By enhancing the spatial resolution for identifying runoff recharge sources can reduce the model uncertainty by 69%. Thus, taking full account of the spatial heterogeneity in arid regions is an important initiative to achieve scientific water resources management.

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“…Winter is the fastest warming season in most of the US, and this is causing reductions in snow pack, and shifts in the timing and volume of snowmelt (Grimm et al, 2013;Godsey et al, 2014;Reidmiller et al, 2018;Elias et al, 2021;Climate Central, 2022). The US Global Change Research Program indicate that atmospheric circulation patterns are changing due to global warming and will cause more aridity in the US southwest, where this study took place, particularly during La Niña years (Christensen et al, 2007;Seager et al, 2007).…”

Section: Implications Of Changing Snowpack On Stream Functionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Winter is the fastest warming season in most of the US, and this is causing a shortening of the snow season, a reduction in snow pack, and shifts in the timing and volume of snowmelt related runoff (Grimm et al, 2013;Godsey et al, 2014;Elias et al, 2021;Climate Central, 2022). The reduction in snowpack volume has been attributed to increasing winter temperatures resulting in more frequent winter melt events (Musselman et al, 2021), shifts in precipitation from snow to rain (Berghuijs et al, 2014), and lower total precipitation trends also associated with climate patterns including El Niño and La Niña (Cortés and Margulis, 2017;Goddard and Gershunov, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The understudied winter: Evidence of how precipitation differences affect stream metabolism in a headwater

et al. 2022

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Climate change is causing pronounced shifts during winter in the US, including shortening the snow season, reducing snowpack, and altering the timing and volume of snowmelt-related runoff. These changes in winter precipitation patterns affect in-stream freeze-thaw cycles, including ice and snow cover, and can trigger direct and indirect effects on in-stream physical, chemical, and biological processes in ~60% of river basins in the Northern Hemisphere. We used high-resolution, multi-parameter data collected in a headwater stream and its local environment (climate and soil) to determine interannual variability in physical, chemical, and biological signals in a montane stream during the winter of an El Niño and a La Niña year. We observed ~77% greater snow accumulation during the El Niño year, which caused the formation of an ice dam that shifted the system from a primarily lotic to a lentic environment. Water chemistry and stream metabolism parameters varied widely between years. They featured anoxic conditions lasting over a month, with no observable gross primary production (GPP) occurring under the ice and snow cover in the El Niño year. In contrast, dissolved oxygen and GPP remained relatively high during the winter months of the La Niña year. These redox and metabolic changes driven by changes in winter precipitation have significant implications for water chemistry and biological functioning beyond the winter. Our study suggests that as snow accumulation and hydrologic conditions shift during the winter due to climate change, hot-spots and hot-moments for biogeochemical processing may be reduced, with implications for the downstream movement of nutrients and transported materials.

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Implications of observed changes in high mountain snow water storage, snowmelt timing and melt window

Cited by 13 publications

References 53 publications

A tale of two rivers: Dam‐induced hydrologic drought on the lower Dolores River and its impact on tamarisk establishment

A tale of two rivers: Dam‐induced hydrologic drought on the lower Dolores River and its impact on tamarisk establishment

Spatial variability of runoff recharge sources and influence mechanisms in an arid mountain flow‐producing zone

The understudied winter: Evidence of how precipitation differences affect stream metabolism in a headwater

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