Relationship between water color, water levels, and climate indices in large rivers: Case of the St. Lawrence River (Canada)

Abstract

[1] The relationship between the color (measured with Landsat Thematic Mapper and Enhanced Thematic Mapper sensors in bands 1, 2, and 3) of St. Lawrence River (SLR) water and water levels (in SLR and Lake Ontario) was first analyzed, followed by the analysis of the relationship between water levels and four climate indices for the period from 1984 to 2009. Although there is a statistically significant relationship between these first two variables, this link depends on the strength of two factors: the type of color (band) and inflows from tributaries. Bands 1 (blue) and 2 (green) were negatively correlated with water levels. This correlation, however, is spatially influenced by water inflows from tributaries. Band 3 (red) showed no significant correlation with either water level. Over the same period, water levels were negatively correlated with the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation index. Results suggest that the color of waters in the SLR may be used as an indicator to monitor environmental and climate changes in its watershed.

Temporal Variability of Monthly Daily Extreme Water Levels in the St. Lawrence River at the Sorel Station from 1912 to 2010

“…This correlation is also observed between AMO and annual daily maximum and minimum water levels [12] and for monthly mean water levels [14]. In North America, AMO is correlated negatively to precipitation and streamflow in a large part of the regions located within the continent (e.g., [39][40][41][42]).…”

“…No study looking at the temporal variability of water levels or streamflow in the St. Lawrence River has addressed this question specifically (e.g., [12][13][14][15][16]). Moreover, these studies have not identified any impact of such hydroclimatic changes on the variability of water levels or streamflow in the St. Lawrence River.…”

Seasonal Variation of the Physico-chemical Composition of Ottawa River Waters in the St. Lawrence River

“…Many studies have analyzed the physicochemical and biological characteristics of these waters (e.g., [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]) and of related sediments [25][26][27][28], while other studies focused on optical characterization of these waters (e.g., [27][28][29][30][31][32]). Most of these studies analyzed the spatial variability of these characteristics in the St. Lawrence River, but very few looked at their seasonal and interannual variability.…”