Simulation of Subsidence Mitigation Effects on Island Drain Flow, Seepage, and Organic Carbon Loads on Subsided Islands Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta

Deverel, Steven J.; Leighton, D A; Lucero, Christina; Ingrum, Timothy

doi:10.15447/sfews.2017v15iss4art2

Cited by 4 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…This result was confirmed by the water balance data: more water was lost via subsurface flow under low than high drain management (Table 1). These results are also consistent with hydrologic modeling presented for Twitchell Island (Deverel et al, 2017), where groundwater flow and solute transport modeling was used to estimate variations in drain flows, loads, and seepage for varying rice and wetland management practices.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

“…Rice keeps soils flooded longer and decreases oxidation but will result in increased loads of DOC (Deverel et al, 2017) and methyl mercury (Heim et al, 2009) unless drain flows are controlled. Under the drain management status quo (low drains), subsidence can be mitigated by rice cultivation, but seepage and drain flows may increase and water quality problems may become exacerbated because more water seeps from rice fields to adjacent drainage ditches.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Hydraulic pressure head between the island surface and the adjacent water bodies causes seepage into toe ditches, drainage ditches and low spots (Supplemental Fig. S1) of the islands (Deverel et al, 2017). Subsidence continues at rates between a few 10ths to over 2.5 cm yr −1 with net soil losses from the Delta.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rice Drain Management to Reduce Seepage Exports in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California

Bachand¹,

Bachand²,

Stern

et al. 2018

J of Env Quality

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Many deltas worldwide face subsidence issues due to increased anthropogenic activity. The Sacramento–San Joaquin delta similarly faces ongoing subsidence, more than 8 m in some areas, that increases levee failure risks and threatens the security of this water source for 25 million California residents and 1.2 million ha of agriculture. Rice (Oryza sativa L.) fields are an integral part of a proposed new strategy for managing subsidence because they have been shown to stop subsidence and provide an alternative crop for growers. Two important considerations for implementing rice fields are additional water requirement and the effect on water quality from mobilized dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and disinfection byproduct precursors. To understand constituent transport and potential management opportunities for rice farming, a plug flow reactor mass balance model was used to quantify surface and subsurface hydrologic pathways. Management of adjacent drainage ditch water levels under low and high scenarios were tested as a strategy to reduce seepage and water quality loads. Under high drains, groundwater met 10% of evapotranspiration (ET). Low drains resulted in a 100% increase in ET demand, which was met by surface water applied for irrigation. High drains reduced subsurface seepage by 95%. Subsurface DOC, trihalomethane, and total dissolved nitrogen loads were reduced 10‐fold in high drains compared with low drains. Flow rate accounted for 74 to 90% of load variance and was the primary determinant of constituent loads. Thoughtful implementation of rice cultivation, with high water levels in adjacent drains, can be leveraged to reduce irrigation water demand and constituent load outputs. Core Ideas High drain reduced subsurface seepage flow losses by >10× compared with low drain. High drain reduced groundwater seepage by 99% and surface water seepage by 90%. High drain reduced water quality loads from subsurface sources by 10×. Flow rate was the primary determinant of loads, accounting for 74–90% of variance.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rice Drain Management to Reduce Seepage Exports in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California

Bachand¹,

Bachand²,

Stern

et al. 2018

J of Env Quality

Self Cite

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“…Formation of disinfection by-products resultant from high DOC concentrations has required utilities to increase treatment costs. As subsidence ensues, island drainage export loads of dissolved organic carbon and methyl mercury to Delta channels also increase (Deverel et al, 2007;Heim et al, 2009). Drainage costs will increase because of larger pumping lifts.…”

Section: Effects On Water Quality Arability and Economymentioning

confidence: 99%

Solutions for subsidence in the California Delta, USA, an extreme example of organic-soil drainage gone awry

Deverel¹,

Dore²,

Schmutte³

2020

Proc. IAHS

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Abstract. The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is at the heart of California's water supply system that provides water for irrigation and human consumption. It is also home to subsiding organic soils, decreasing native aquatic species populations, water quality degradation, vulnerable levees (levees are equivalent to dikes) and decreasing agricultural viability. There has been substantial progress in the interdisciplinary understanding and quantification of the nature and effects of subsidence and its mitigation. Because of the need for a drained rootzone, farming of crops such as vegetables, trees, vines, corn and alfalfa, results in an ongoing unsustainable cycle of continuing peat oxidation and deepening of drainage ditches to compensate for elevation loss. Despite substantial evidence for the increasing risks to the State's economy and water supply, the unsustainability of the status quo, and evidence for the benefits of alternatives, there has been limited progress in converting to land uses that can reduce, stop and reverse subsidence. Our overall approach has been to measure land-surface elevation changes; understand, quantify and model subsidence and greenhouse gas emissions from drained organic soil, and evaluate alternate land uses. Subsidence rates vary from less than 0.5 to over 2 cm yr−1, depending primarily on depth to groundwater and soil organic matter content. The primary cause of subsidence is the oxidation of organic matter, which has resulted in elevations of −3 to −9 m on about 100 000 ha. Using the results from micrometeorological measurements and modelling, we estimate that organic-matter oxidation causes an annual emission of over 2×106 t of CO2-equivalent which represents about 21 % of the State's plant-based agricultural emissions. Rewetting of the peat soils is emerging as a viable solution. Rice and wetlands stop and (in the case of wetlands) reverse the effects of subsidence and result in a net greenhouse-gas emission reduction benefit. Wetlands accrete about 3 cm of soil per year, can break the unsustainable subsidence/drainage cycle, reverse the trajectory of increasing hydraulic pressures on levees, reduce the probability of levee failure and seepage onto islands (islands are equivalent to polders), and may provide material for biofuels and animal feed. The recent implementation of a methodology for quantification of the GHG benefit is facilitating land use conversion and participation in the carbon market.

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“…Restored wetlands present a particularly interesting and important case study to examine the phenological complexity and its implications for ecosystem functions targeted by management. Restoration has been globally expanding as a strategy to mitigate wetland losses and re-create their critical services such as carbon sequestration, ecological habitats, hydrological functions and coastal flood protection (Deverel et al, 2017;Hemes et al, 2019;Klemas, 2013;Miller and Fujii, 2010;Villa and Bernal, 2018). However, as any ecological perturbation, restoration may lead to substantial spatio-temporal variability in ecosystem structure and function, particularly early in the recovery (Chamberlain et al, 2018;Chapple and Dronova, 2017;Dronova and Taddeo, 2016;Suding, 2011;Zhao et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Remotely sensed phenological heterogeneity of restored wetlands: linking vegetation structure and function

Dronova

Taddeo

Hemes

et al. 2021

Agricultural and Forest Meteorology

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Seasonal phenological dynamics of vegetation hold important clues on ecosystem performance towards management goals, like carbon uptake, and thus should be considered in projections of their targeted services. However, in wetlands spatio-temporal heterogeneity due to mixing of open water, soil, green and dead vegetation makes it difficult to generalize ecosystem functioning across different regions. Remote sensing observations can provide spatially-explicit, cost-effective phenology indicators; however, little is known about their capacity to indicate the links between wetland ecosystem structure and function. Here we assessed this potential by comparing one-year Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) from satellite products at high (5m; RapidEye) and low (30m; Landsat) spatial resolutions with eddy covariance time series of net carbon exchange, field digital camera (phenocam) greenness and water temperature among three floristically similar restored wetlands in California, USA. Phenological timing differed by wetland site: depending on satellite, the range in site-median start of greening was up to 28 days, end of greening-up to 73 days, start of senescence-up to 79 days, and end of senescence-up to 10 days. Key transition dates from satellite inputs agreed with seasonal changes in net carbon exchange, phenocam greenness and water temperatures, suggesting that phenological contrasts could result in part from site differences in vegetation configuration and litter affecting the exposure of canopy, soil and water to sunlight and thus sub-canopy microclimate and ecosystem functioning. Yet, the agreement between satellite inputs was non-systematic, with the greatest disparities at the more heterogeneous, less vegetated site. Phenological model fitting uncertainty increased with greater spatial resolution, highlighting the tradeoff between the accuracy of representing vegetation and the complexity of local seasonal variation. These findings highlight the sensitivity of satellite-derived phenology to structural and functional heterogeneity of ecosystems and call for more rigorous spatiallyexplicit analyses to inform assessments of restoration and management outcomes.

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Simulation of Subsidence Mitigation Effects on Island Drain Flow, Seepage, and Organic Carbon Loads on Subsided Islands Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta

Cited by 4 publications

References 42 publications

Rice Drain Management to Reduce Seepage Exports in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California

Rice Drain Management to Reduce Seepage Exports in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California

Solutions for subsidence in the California Delta, USA, an extreme example of organic-soil drainage gone awry

Remotely sensed phenological heterogeneity of restored wetlands: linking vegetation structure and function

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