The Robinson Forest environmental monitoring network: Long‐term evaluation of streamflow and precipitation quantity and stream‐water and bulk deposition chemistry in eastern Kentucky watersheds

Abstract

The University of Kentucky (U KY) has owned Robinson Forest (37.460723 N, 83.158598 W) since 1923, conducting experiments crucial to understanding the environmental effects of land management in the region. Part of the management of Robinson Forest has been collection of environmental data, including precipitation quantity, bulkdeposition chemistry, streamflow, stream-water chemistry, and air and stream temperature. Over the years, these data have been collected and archived using various technologies and have been mostly inaccessible for research useunedited and uncompiled, scattered across several spreadsheets and paper records. Through a partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and U KY, daily precipitation data for six stations and stream data from four watersheds in Robinson Forest have been compiled for 1971-2018, checked for transcription errors, and annotated for changes in methodologies. These data are available as a USGS data release at https://doi.org/10.5066/P9FPLG1O. Improved accessibility of this data set provides an important research resource for understanding water quality in minimally effected forests in the region. Preliminary results indicate that these data present a valuable opportunity to evaluate linkages among atmospheric deposition and stream chemistry, the effects of environmental policy, such as the Clean Air Act, and effects from nearby land disturbance in the form of surface mining. Furthermore, these data fill a geographic and physiographic gap in what is available to examine deposition and streamflow patterns over the last 45 years, supplementing those long-term records of research sites in northern (e.g., Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest), central (e.g., Fernow Experimental Forest) and southern Appalachia (e.g., Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory). As an oasis in the midst of significant surface mining activity, Robinson Forest presents a unique opportunity to understand environmental conditions characteristic of minimally disturbed forests similar to pre-mining conditions in the Central Appalachian region.

Long-term changes in coarse woody debris abundance in three Appalachian headwater streams with differing best management practices

“…Stage height was recorded on stripcharts until systems were upgraded to electronic data loggers in 2009. Data were assembled and checked for potential errors as described in Sena et al (2021). Briefly, streamflow data spanning as much of the surveyed period as possible were visually assessed using graphs in Excel to identify potentially corrupted data (e.g., inaccurate data recorded by a malfunctioning data logger).…”

“…on drier ridgetops (Overstreet, 1984). Climate at Robinson Forest is temperate and humid, with an average annual temperature of 13.6°C and mean annual precipitation of 1,121 mm (Sena et al, 2021). Elevation ranges from 245 to 475 m (Arthur et al, 1998).…”