U.S. Geological Survey groundwater toolbox, a graphical and mapping interface for analysis of hydrologic data (version 1.0): user guide for estimation of base flow, runoff, and groundwater recharge from streamflow data

Barlow, Paul M.; Cunningham, William L.; Zhai, Tong; Gray, Mark H.

doi:10.3133/tm3b10

Cited by 58 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Although a wide range of methods exist for assessing groundwater discharge (Kalbus, Reinstorf, & Schirmer, ), most apply either to the point scale (e.g., Rosenberry, ) or the integrated stream‐reach scale (e.g., Moore, ), and therefore often do not comprehensively characterize preferential groundwater discharges in space. At basin scales, there has been substantial advancements in hydrograph separation (Barlow, Cunningham, Zhai, & Gray, ) and stable isotope techniques (Jasechko, Kirchner, Welker, & McDonnell, ) to indicate aggregate groundwater discharge characteristics throughout networks, but they do not capture fine‐scale preferential discharge processes. Fortunately, recent advancements in sensor technology and remote sensing platforms provide unprecedented opportunity for efficient and robust system scale surveys of focused groundwater discharges.…”

Section: Recent Advances In Field Characterizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Explicit consideration of preferential groundwater discharges as surface water ecosystem control points

Briggs

Hare

2018

Hydrological Processes

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| BACKGROUNDHeterogeneities in sediment and rock permeability induce preferential groundwater flow from the scale of pore networks to large basins. In the unsaturated zone, preferential flow is frequently conceptualized as an infiltration process dominated by macropores, resulting in stronger delivery of surface-derived solute than would be predicted via diffuse percolation alone (Beven & Germann, 2013). In the saturated zone, preferential flow occurs in bedrock fractures and karst, along geologic contacts and fault zones, and through unconsolidated materials of relatively high connectivity (Winter, Harvey, Franke, & Alley, 1998). Focused flow paths emanate on the land surface as preferential groundwater discharges, observed throughout stream, lake, wetland, and estuary systems. The prevalence, and perhaps dominance, of spatially focused discharges to surface water contrasts with the spatially diffuse flow often assumed in various conceptual and predictive process-based models. This simplification is not made out of an unawareness of preferential groundwater discharge; rather, the ability to reliably measure focused flow across a range of scales is hampered by a reliance on (relatively) sparse point measurements. Additionally, realistic distributions of <1-to 100-m-scale preferential groundwater discharges are computationally expensive to simulate at scales relevant to decision making. If we accept that preferential discharge of groundwater to surface water is an ubiquitous process, fundamental questions facing contemporary hydrogeology include (a) When does spatially focused groundwater discharge matter to the process we would like to predict? Followed by (b) If we determine when preferential discharge "matters" and should not be simplified to diffuse inflows, how do we measure it at the spatial and temporal scales needed to inform process-based models?A lopsided emphasis on hyporheic exchange processes has dominated groundwater/surface water exchange research for the past 15 years, as reviewed thoroughly by Boano et al. (2014) and Cardenas (2015). Within this body of research, there is growing recognition of the need to characterize surface water "ecosystem control points" that exert strong influence on the physical exchange and reaction of elements throughout river networks (Bernhardt et al., 2017). However, the process of preferential groundwater discharge is often not explicit in these discussions. The more universal definitions of hyporheic flow involve bidirectional exchange of surface water with near-stream saturated sediments. This definition is distinct from unidirectional preferential groundwater discharge to the land surface. The streambed is often incorrectly characterized as a zone of substantial mixing of groundwater and surface water; however, multiple studies indicate that groundwater and surface water mixing is limited to relatively narrow subsurface convergence zones (e.g., Hester, Young, & Widdowson, 2013). Popular stream-based transient storage models conceptually reduce groundwater discharge...

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Section: Recent Advances In Field Characterizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Explicit consideration of preferential groundwater discharges as surface water ecosystem control points

Briggs

Hare

2018

Hydrological Processes

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“…As mentioned above, USGS stream gage number 011058837 bounds the lower end of the 6‐km study reach. The USGS Groundwater Toolbox (Barlow, Cunningham, Tong, & Mark, 2017) was used to estimate the percentage of total streamflow composed of groundwater discharge using the HYSEP‐sliding interval method (Barlow, Cunningham, Zhai, & Gray, 2014) with daily streamflow data from the gage. For the water year that bounds this study (the period from October 1, 2016 to September 30, 2017, accessed January 05, 2020 from U.S. Geological Survey, 2019), it was estimated that streamflow at the gage on average was composed of approximately 95% groundwater discharge (i.e., “baseflow”).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hillslope groundwater discharges provide localized stream ecosystem buffers from regional per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances contamination

Briggs

Tokranov

Hull

et al. 2020

Hydrological Processes

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Emerging groundwater contaminants such as per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) may impact surface-water quality and groundwater-dependent ecosystems of gaining streams. Although complex near-surface hydrogeology of stream corridors challenges sampling efforts, recent advances in heat tracing of discharge zones enable efficient and informed data collection. For this study, we used a combination of streambed temperature push-probe and thermal infrared methods to guide a discharge-zone-oriented sample collection along approximately 6 km of a coastal trout stream on Cape Cod, MA. Eight surface-water locations and discharging groundwater from 24 streambed and bank seepages were analysed for dissolved oxygen (DO), specific conductance, stable water isotopes, and a range of PFAS compounds, which are contaminants of emerging concern in aquatic environments. The results indicate a complex system of groundwater discharge source flowpaths, where the sum of concentrations of six PFAS compounds (corresponding to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency third Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule "UCMR 3") showed a median concentration of 52 ± 331 (SD) ng/L with two higher outliers and three discharges with PFAS concentrations below the quantification limit. Higher PFAS concentration was related (−0.66 Spearman rank, p < .001) to discharging groundwater that showed an evaporative signature (deuterium excess), indicating flow through at least one upgradient kettle lake. Therefore, more regional groundwater flowpaths originating from outside the local river corridor tended to show higher PFAS concentrations as evaluated at their respective discharge zones. Conversely, PFAS concentrations were typically low at discharges that did not indicate evaporation and were adjacent to steep hillslopes and, therefore, were classified as locally recharged groundwater. Previous research at this stream found that the native brook trout spawn at discharge points of groundwater recharged on local hillslopes, likely in response to generally higher levels of DO. Our study shows that by targeting high oxygen discharges the trout may thereby be avoiding emerging contaminants such as PFAS in groundwater recharged farther from the stream.

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“…I used the USGS Groundwater Toolbox (Barlow et al. , ; https://water.usgs.gov/ogw/gwtoolbox/) to download freshwater daily discharge time series corresponding to the selected USGS gaging stations in New England from the GAGESII dataset (Falcone et al. ; Falcone ) for available years of data between 1985 and 2015.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Statistical Models to Predict and Assess Spatial and Temporal Low‐Flow Variability in New England Rivers and Streams

Detenbeck

2018

J American Water Resour Assoc

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In the northern hemisphere, summer low flows are a key attribute defining both quantity and quality of aquatic habitat. I developed one set of models for New England streams/rivers predicting July/August median flows averaged across 1985–2015 as a function of weather, slope, % imperviousness, watershed storage, glacial geology, and soils. These models performed better than most United States Geological Survey models for summer flows developed at a statewide scale. I developed a second set of models predicting interannual differences in summer flows as a function of differences in air temperature, precipitation, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index, and lagged NAO. Use of difference equations eliminated the need for transformations and accounted for serial autocorrelations at lag 1. The models were used in sequence to estimate time series for monthly low flows and for two derived flow metrics (tenth percentile [Q10] and minimum 3‐in‐5 year average flows). The first metric is commonly used in assessing risk to low‐flow conditions over time, while the second has been correlated with increased probability of localized extinctions for brook trout. The flow metrics showed increasing trends across most of New England for 1985–2015. However, application of summer flow models with average and extreme climate projections to the Taunton River, Massachusetts, a sensitive watershed undergoing rapid development, projected that low‐flow metrics will decrease over the next 50 years.

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U.S. Geological Survey groundwater toolbox, a graphical and mapping interface for analysis of hydrologic data (version 1.0): user guide for estimation of base flow, runoff, and groundwater recharge from streamflow data

Cited by 58 publications

References 10 publications

Explicit consideration of preferential groundwater discharges as surface water ecosystem control points

Explicit consideration of preferential groundwater discharges as surface water ecosystem control points

Hillslope groundwater discharges provide localized stream ecosystem buffers from regional per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances contamination

Statistical Models to Predict and Assess Spatial and Temporal Low‐Flow Variability in New England Rivers and Streams

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