The role of baseflow in dissolved solids delivery to streams in the Upper Colorado River Basin

Rumsey, Christine A.; Miller, Matthew P.; Schwarz, Gregory E.; Hirsch, Robert M.; Susong, David D.

doi:10.1002/hyp.11390

Cited by 34 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…The degraded water quality of Poyang Lake and its catchment rivers has become a serious problem affecting the ecology and environment (S. Wang, ; Wu, Cai, Zhang, & Chen, ). Many researchers have reported that baseflow plays an important role in the delivery of various materials (e.g., dissolved solids and nutrient concentration) to rivers in catchments (Ford et al, ; Rumsey et al, ). Thus, future work for managers and ecologists studying Poyang Lake should consider the contribution of baseflow to the quality of river and lake water, because 44% to 79% of the streamflow is derived from baseflow (Figures and ) through many subsurface flow paths.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Baseflow refers generally to groundwater discharge flowing into the catchment streamflows, and it is an important component of the groundwater flow system (Ahiablame, Sheshukov, Rahmani, & Moriasi, ; R. Zhang, Chen, Zhang, Soulsby, & Gao, ). It is an important portion of streamflow that generates from shallow, lateral subsurface flow and deep groundwater flow and changes gradually over short‐ and long‐term scales (Nathan & McMahon, ; Rumsey, Miller, Schwarz, Hirsch, & Susong, ). Baseflow sustains river flow between events affected by rainfall–run‐off processes (Miller, Buto, Susong, & Rumsey, ; Shore et al, ; J. Zhang, Zhang, Song, & Cheng, ), which is important for understanding relationships between aquatic habitats and their environment (Ford, King, & Williams, ; Santhi, Allen, Muttiah, Arnold, & Tuppad, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Historical and predicted variations of baseflow in China's Poyang Lake catchment

Zhang

2018

River Research & Apps

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Baseflow availability and its contribution to streamflow are critical for planning and management of catchment hydrology and ecology. This study uses a digital filtering technique, statistical methods, and hydrological projection to investigate historical and future baseflow characteristics with respect to climate and land use impacts, exemplified by the large Poyang Lake catchment (China). Digital filtering results show that annual baseflow varied between 25 × 108 and 820 × 108 m3/year for the catchment rivers during 1953–2014. The results reveal that on average 62% of the long‐term streamflow in the catchment is derived from baseflow contribution. Statistics show a generally increasing trend in the annual baseflow and baseflow index (BFI) for most of the rivers over the past 60 years, with the major frequencies varying between 5 and 20 years. Although the trends in baseflow and BFI are attributable to the combined effects of climate and land use change across the catchment, baseflow variations are expected to be more sensitive to climate than land use changes. In general, precipitation plays a dominant role in controlling baseflow and can be used as an indication of the variations in baseflow at the subcatchment scale. Hydrological projection shows that annual baseflow and BFI are likely to increase by up to 31% and 13% during 2018–2035, respectively, based on historical baseflow trends. Our results indicate that management approaches for the catchment that consider groundwater and surface water as a joint resource will be needed to effectively manage the current and future river regime, its water resources, and water quality.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical and predicted variations of baseflow in China's Poyang Lake catchment

Zhang

2018

River Research & Apps

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“…Our results are generally consistent with these studies, as we could relate only 1.4% of basin load to one of our erosion risk index variables (bgm90q.pct). Rumsey et al () also showed that agricultural irrigation areas were associated with increased baseflow loads. This finding is also consistent with our experience in selecting a model strategy that avoided correcting for diversions, which are likely to be moving though short residence time groundwater pathways back into surface waters after being applied for irrigation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Salinity Yield Modeling of the Upper Colorado River Basin Using 30‐m Resolution Soil Maps and Random Forests

Nauman

Ely

Miller

et al. 2019

Water Resources Research

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Salinity loading in the Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB) costs local economies upward of $300 million U.S. dollars annually. Salinity source models have generally included coarse spatial data to represent nonagriculture sources. We developed new predictive soil property and cover maps at 30-m resolution to improve source representation in salinity modeling. Salinity loading erosion risk indices were also created based on soil properties, remotely sensed bare ground exposure, and topographic factors to examine potential surface soil erosion drivers. These new maps and data from previous SPARROW models were related to recently updated records of salinity at 309 stream gauges in the UCRB using random forest regressions. Resulting salinity yield predictions indicate more diffuse salinity sources, with slightly higher yields in more arid portions of the UCRB, and less overall load coming from irrigated agricultural sources. Model simulations still indicate irrigation to be the major human source of salinity (661,000 Mg or 12%) and also suggest that 75,000 Mg (1.4%) of annual salinity in the UCRB is coming from areas with excessive exposed bare ground in high-elevation mountain areas. Model inputs allow for field-scale screening of locations that could be targeted for salinity control projects. Results confirm recent studies indicating limited surface erosional influence on salinity loading in UCRB surface waters, but impacts of monsoonal runoff events are still not fully understood, particularly in drylands. The study highlights the utility of new predictive soil maps and machine learning for environmental modeling.

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“…Well-known concentration-streamflow relationships demonstrate that when the bulk of streamflow originates as groundwater discharge, dissolved solids concentrations are typically greatest (Bluth & Kump, 1994;Jennifer C. McIntosh et al, 2017) . Groundwater discharge is often the origin of dissolved solids in watersheds (Rumsey et al, 2017). These conclusions are often based on chemical hydrography separation, which does not provide direct evidence of the depth of groundwater circulation.…”

Section: What Are the Crucial Connections Between Groundwater And Othmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global groundwater sustainability, resources and systems in the Anthropocene

Gleeson¹,

Cuthbert²,

Ferguson³

et al. 2019

Preprint

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Groundwater is a crucial resource for current and future generations but is not being sustainably used in many parts of the world. The objective of this review is to provide a clear portrait of global-scale groundwater sustainability, systems and resources in the Anthropocene, in order to inspire a pivot towards more sustainable pathways. We examine groundwater from three different but related perspectives of sustainability science, natural resource governance and management, and Earth Systems science. We propose that groundwater sustainability can be defined with a direct link with observable data, governance and management as well as the crucial functions and services of groundwater. An Earth System approach highlights the connections between groundwater and the rest of the hydrosphere, biosphere, atmosphere and lithosphere, and how these connections are impacting, or impacted by, groundwater pumping. Regional differences in priorities, hydrology, politics, culture and economic contexts mean that different governance and management tools are important. But a global perspective can support higher level international policies in an increasingly globalised world, that require broader analysis of interconnections between regions and knowledge transfer between regions. 1.Groundwater is depleted or contaminated in some regions and ubiquitously distributed which, importantly, makes it broadly accessible, but also slow and invisible and therefore challenging to govern and manage.2.Groundwater is the largest store of unfrozen freshwater on Earth and is heterogeneously connected to a number of Earth System processes on different timescales.3.A coherent overarching framework of groundwater sustainability is more important for groundwater governance and management than the concepts of safe yield, renewability, depletion or stress.

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The role of baseflow in dissolved solids delivery to streams in the Upper Colorado River Basin

Cited by 34 publications

References 27 publications

Historical and predicted variations of baseflow in China's Poyang Lake catchment

Historical and predicted variations of baseflow in China's Poyang Lake catchment

Salinity Yield Modeling of the Upper Colorado River Basin Using 30‐m Resolution Soil Maps and Random Forests

Global groundwater sustainability, resources and systems in the Anthropocene

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