Structural organization of process zones in upland watersheds of central Nevada and its influence on basin connectivity, dynamics, and wet meadow complexes

Miller, Jerry R.; Lord, Mark; Villarroel, Lionel F.; Germanoski, Dru; Chambers, Jeanne C.

doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2011.11.004

Cited by 19 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Land degradation impacts bofedales in the study area through the following mechanisms: (1) reduced vegetative cover, increased runoff, and decreased infiltration rates on slopes reduce groundwater recharge, causing dry season water stress for wetland plants (Trimble & Mendell 1995;Salvador et al 2014); (2) gullies that incise through bofedales lower water tables, changing species composition, also causing dry season water stress for wetland plants (Wright & Chambers 2002;Schilling et al 2003;Loheide & Gorelick 2007;Loheide & Booth 2011); (3) increased flow velocities in channels can increase vegetation scour, leading to rapid development and destruction of bofedal vegetation in channels and floodplains (Earle et al 2003); and (4) increased sediment transported from slopes can cover bofedales that are not incised by gullies, causing plant mortality, changes in species composition, and increased soil elevation relative to the water table (Werner & Zedler 2002;Miller et al 2012).…”

Section: Methods Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in carbon storage with land management promoted by payment for ecosystem services

et al. 2016

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SUMMARYAndean grasslands (páramos) are highly valued for their role in regional water supply as well as for their biodiversity and large soil carbon stocks. Several Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) programmes promote either afforestation or alteration of traditional burning regimes under the assumption that these land management strategies will maximize páramo ecosystem services, including carbon storage. However, knowledge of the effects of incentivized land uses is limited. In an evaluation of how afforestation and elimination of burning affect carbon storage at a site in southern Ecuador, we found the highest above-ground biomass carbon levels at afforested sites (99.3–122.0 t C ha−1), while grassland sites reached 23.9 t C ha−1 after 45 years of burn exclusion. Soil carbon storage from 0–20 cm was high across all sites (172.8–201.9 t C ha−1), but was significantly lower with afforestation than with burn exclusion. These findings suggest that, although afforestation is generally favoured when carbon is the primary ecosystem service of interest, grasslands with infrequent burning have important potential as a land management strategy when both above-ground biomass and soil carbon are considered. These results are relevant to the development and adaptation of PES programmes focused on carbon as well as those focused on multiple ecosystem services.

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Section: Methods Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in carbon storage with land management promoted by payment for ecosystem services

et al. 2016

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“…Traditionally, the upstream pollutant inputs are assumed to transport semi-systematically downstream. In the MAP-PMA framework, this classical continuum idea was replaced by a hierarchical idea, in which the river network is divided into smaller river sections between multiple assessment points (Brierley and Fryirs, 2011;Miller et al, 2012Miller et al, , 2013. Each river section represents a homogeneous spatial unit, which associated with a specific assessment point within the river network.…”

Section: The Targeting Of Upstream Pmasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Upstream to downstream: a multiple-assessment-point approach for targeting non-point-source priority management areas at large watershed scale

Chen

Zhong

Wei

et al. 2014

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. The identification of priority management areas (PMAs) is essential for the control of non-point-source (NPS) pollution, especially for a large-scale watershed. However, previous studies have typically focused on small-scale catchments adjacent to specific assessment points; thus, the interactions between multiple river points remain poorly understood. In this study, a multiple-assessment-point PMA (MAP-PMA) framework was proposed by integrating the upstream sources and the downstream transport aspects of NPS pollution. Daning River watershed was taken as a case study in this paper, which has demonstrated that the integration of the upstream input changes was vital for the final PMAs map, especially for downstream areas. Contrary to conventional wisdom, this research recommended that the NPS pollutants could be best controlled among the upstream highlevel PMAs when protecting the water quality of the entire watershed. The MAP-PMA framework provided a more costeffective tool for the establishment of conservation practices, especially for a large-scale watershed.

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“…This classical continuum view has begun to be replaced in recent years by a segmented, hierarchical perspective of a drainage network in which channel and valley floor environments can be subdivided into progressively smaller units (Frissell et al, 1986;Kishi et al, 1987;Grant et al, 1990Grant et al, , 1995Montgomery and Buffington, 1993;Fryirs, 2001, 2005;Miller et al, 2012). Each unit, of a given scale, is morphologically homogeneous with respect to landforms, processes, and other controlling factors such as geology, vegetation, and substrate (Gant et al, 1995).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), reach-scale units (defined according to the nature of both the channel and valley floor), and larger units ranging up to and beyond the entire drainage basin. Application of the hierarchal approach for management purposes has focused on reach-scale units, often referred to as process zones (Montgomery and Buffington, 1993;Miller et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The geomorphic and hydrologic connectivity of the system is highly dependent on the time scale under consideration. For example, drainage systems located in areas characterized by seasonal rainfall may be hydrologically connected during the wet period, but disconnected during the dry months when the channel possesses both perennial and ephemeral reaches (Miller et al, 2012). Over longer time scales (years to decades), sections of the drainage network may become incised, thereby increasing the surface connectivity between the zones, or become filled, creating a discontinuous drainage system with decreased connectivity between process zones.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Influence of basin connectivity on sediment source, transport, and storage within the Mkabela Basin, South Africa

Miller

Mackin

Lechler

et al. 2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. The management of sediment and other non-point source (NPS) pollution has proven difficult, and requires a sound understanding of particle movement through the drainage system. The primary objective of this investigation was to obtain an understanding of NPS sediment source(s), transport, and storage within the Mkabela Basin, a representative agricultural catchment within the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands of eastern South Africa, by combining geomorphic, hydrologic and geochemical fingerprinting analyses.The Mkabela Basin can be subdivided into three distinct subcatchments that differ in their ability to transport and store sediment along the axial valley. Headwater (upper catchment) areas are characterized by extensive wetlands that act as significant sediment sinks. Mid-catchment areas, characterized by higher relief and valley gradients, exhibit few wetlands, but rather are dominated by a combination of alluvial and bedrock channels that are conducive to sediment transport. The lower catchment exhibits a low-gradient alluvial channel that is boarded by extensive riparian wetlands that accumulate large quantities of sediment (and NPS pollutants).Fingerprinting studies suggest that silt-and clay-rich layers found within wetland and reservoir deposits of the upper and upper-mid subcatchments are derived from the erosion of fine-grained, valley bottom soils frequently utilized as vegetable fields. Coarser-grained deposits within these wetlands and reservoirs result from the erosion of sandier hillslope soils extensively utilized for sugar cane, during relatively high magnitude runoff events that are capable of transporting sand-sized sediment off the slopes. Thus, the source of sediment to the axial valley varies as a function of sediment size and runoff magnitude. Sediment export from upper to lower catchment areas was limited until the early 1990s, in part because the upper catchment wetlands were hydrologically disconnected from lower parts of the watershed during low to moderate flood events. The construction of a drainage ditch through a previously unchanneled wetland altered the hydrologic connectivity of the catchment, allowing sediment to be transported from the headwaters to the lower basin where much of it was deposited within riparian wetlands. The axial drainage system is now geomorphically and hydrologically connected during events capable of overflowing dams located throughout the study basin. The study indicates that increased valley connectivity partly negated the positive benefits of controlling sediment/nutrient exports from the catchment by means of upland based, best management practices.

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Structural organization of process zones in upland watersheds of central Nevada and its influence on basin connectivity, dynamics, and wet meadow complexes

Cited by 19 publications

References 21 publications

Changes in carbon storage with land management promoted by payment for ecosystem services

Changes in carbon storage with land management promoted by payment for ecosystem services

Upstream to downstream: a multiple-assessment-point approach for targeting non-point-source priority management areas at large watershed scale

Influence of basin connectivity on sediment source, transport, and storage within the Mkabela Basin, South Africa

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