Melt water chemistry and its impact on stream water quality

Samples of snowpack leachate were collected over a 60 day period of the spring melt season in 1988 and 1989 at a 10 km² upland catchment in the Cairngorm mountains of Scotland. These were analysed for major ions to assess snowpack chemistry dynamics through the spring and to assess the melt water influence on stream water chemistry. The data clearly show preferential elution of sulphate and nitrate over chloride and hydrogen over the other cations during the early melt of 1988. Following the addition of ions to the snow surface, either as snow or later in the season as rain, the elution sequence is reproduced. Comparison of leachate chemistry with stream chemistry samples taken at the basin outlet indicate that snow pack melt water contributes directly to stream water. The stream water chemistry signal is, however, noisy and the stream concentrations are considerably damped relative to the snowpack leachate. This is thought to be a consequence of differential melting within the catchment as the snowpack at lower altitudes is at a more advanced stage of melt and so holds fewer solutes and mixing with groundwater contributions. Temperature observations at different altitudes within the catchment support this interpretation.     

The impact of land use on stream water quality in Slovakia

In the first part of this paper, the impact of forestry, agriculture and urban activities on the quality of surface water is analysed. Daily data from 15 forest and agricultural experimental catchments of the Institute of Hydrology, Slovak Academy of Sciences are used. It is shown, that the nitrate concentrations in surface water have decreased in Slovakia since 1989 as a result of decreased use of inorganic nitrogen fertilisers (lower intensity of agricultural production in Slovakia owing to recent economic changes). The annual nitrate specific load varies from 5.90 to 110 kg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹, the annual sulphate load varied from 29.16 to 509.60 kg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ and the annual phosphate load varied from 0.0098 to 0.0224 kg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ during 1990–1992.

In the second part, a two-step method of three-component hydrograph separation of rain-, soil- and groundwater is proposed. The method is used in the Manelo-Gribov microbasin (O.95 km²) in Eastern Slovakia. The annual contribution of surface runoff in total runoff volume was 57.5%, the contribution of interflow runoff was 21.1%, and the contribution of groundwater was 21.4%, during the period from 1 August to 31 July 1992. A deterministic regression model for predicting daily nitrate concentrations from values of stream daily discharge and flow component data was developed. A set of 1421 modelled NO₃⁻¹ data was compared with the set of measured data.     

Assessment of visual interpretation of thematic mapper (TM) images for land use and cover in Sudan

Three thematic mapper (TM) images, a band 3 image, a band 4 image and a 432 colour composite image of Khartoum were compared for detection, identification and recognition of land use and cover classes in hydrology in Sudan. Simple visual interpretational techniques were employed for this purpose. The results show that visual interpretation procedures can be very useful for an inventory of hydrologic land use and cover using Landsat TM photographic products. This is an important conclusion for developing countries where digital techniques are very expensive at the present and many developing countries cannot afford to make use of them.     

Assigning land use to supply wells for the statistical characterization of regional groundwater quality: Correlating urban land use and VOC occurrence

Many national and regional groundwater studies have correlated land use “near” a well, often using a 500 m radius circle, with water quality. However, the use of a 500 m circle may seem counterintuitive given that contributing areas are expected to extend up-gradient from wells, and not be circular in shape. The objective of this study was to evaluate if a 500 m circle is adequate for assigning land use to a well for the statistical correlation between urban land use and the occurrence of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Land use and VOC data came from 277 supply wells in four study areas in California. Land use was computed using ten different-sized circles and wedges (250 m to 10 km in radius), and three different-sized “searchlights” (1–2 km in length). We define these shapes as contributing area surrogates (CASs), recognizing that a simple shape is at best a surrogate for the actual contributing area. The presence or absence of correlation between land use and the occurrence of VOCs was evaluated using Kendall’s tau (τ). Values of τ were within 10% of one another for wedges and circles ranging in size from 500 m to 2 km, with correlations remaining statistically significant (p < 0.05) for all CAS sizes and shapes, suggesting that a 500 m circular CAS is adequate for assigning land use to a well. Additional evaluation indicated that urban land use is autocorrelated at distances ranging from 8 to 36 km. Thus, urban land use in a 500 m CAS is likely to be predictive of urban land use in the actual contributing area.     

Effects of geomorphology and land use on stream water quality in southeastern Amazonia

Water quality in streams is determined by several factors, including geology, topography, climate, and anthropogenic changes. This study aimed to assess the effects of watershed physical, morphology, and precipitation seasonality on the water quality of two streams that supply drinking water to rural settlements and urban areas in the Cerrado-Amazonia transition region. We monitored 16 physico-chemical attributes of water at six different sample locations over three years (2013–2016). Our results indicate that eight of these physico-chemical attributes did not meet the standards for safe drinking water established by Brazilian legislation. Precipitation seasonality, degradation of riparian zones, stream length, and watershed slope were the most important predictors of impaired water quality. Our results highlight the importance of restoring and conserving riparian forests in order to maintain drinking water quality.     

Application of the new multimetric MMI_PL index for biological water quality assessment in reference and human-impacted streams (Poland,the Slovak Republic)

A new multimetric MMI_PL index, which is based on the macroinvertebrate composition and combines six single key metrics, has already been implemented in Poland according to the requirements of the EU Water Framework Directive. The objectives of our survey were to assess the biological water quality using the new multimetric MMI_PL index in both reference and human-impacted streams, to analyze whether the values of the new multimetric index properly reflect the ecological status of the water in upland and mountain streams as well as to determine which environmental factors influence the distribution of benthic macroinvertebrates and the values of the metrics. The study was carried out from 2007 to 2010 in three Ecoregions that were established by the EU WFD. A total of 60 sampling sites: 36 reference sites that were situated in the headwaters of mountain streams at mid- and high-altitudes and 24, human-impacted sampling sites were selected. The benthic macroinvertebrate surveys were supported by both a hydromorphological and macrophyte assessment according to the River Habitat Survey (RHS) and to the Macrophyte Methods for Rivers. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) showed that the values of the Habitat Quality Assessment (HQA) index, conductivity, pH and altitude were the parameters most associated (statistically significant) with the distribution of benthic macroinvertebrate taxa and the values of the metrics in both the reference and human-impacted (impaired) sections of the streams in Ecoregions 9, 10 and 14. The new MMI_PL index was useful for biological water quality assessment and was also important for separating both the reference and impaired sections of streams. The MMI_PL index and some key metrics performed contrary to what was expected in relation to the reference high-altitude siliceous streams (the High Tatra Mts., Ecoregion 10). Low values of multimetric index and key metrics did not properly reflect their high ecological status and pristine character as reflected by the hydromorphological (RHS) and macrophyte surveys or the physical and chemical parameters of the water.     

The impact of land use change on water balance in Zhangye city,China

Land use change has a significant effect on water balance, especially in arid region, such as Northwest China. In this paper, we analyze the effect of land use change on water balance in terms of the amount of water supply and demand from economic perspective. It's the first time to extend the basic 48 sectors input-output table to include water and land accounts that involved into multiple production processes for Zhangye city. We then perform the improved ORANI-G model, a single region Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model, to analyze the effect of land use change on water balance under three scenarios. Subsequently, scenario-based simulation results are interpreted through selected sectors from agricultural, industrial, and service sectors respectively. Finally, the effect of land use change on water balance is analyzed through the difference between business-as-usual and land use unchanged scenarios. The results show that the extent of effect on water balance is different among sectors. Specifically, from the perspective of absolute value, service sectors are the largest, followed by industrial sectors, and the agricultural sectors are the least. Conversely, in terms of percentage change of land use, the largest extent of effect occurs in agricultural sectors. Additionally, with the rapid urbanization and the development of social economy, water balance in industrial sectors and service sectors will be stricken and reconstructed to a new high level. Simulation results also show that agricultural land shrinking will mitigate water scarcity distinctly, which indicates that balance the relationship among different stakeholders is imperative to guarantee water transformation from agricultural sectors to industrial and service sectors.     

Assessing morphological degradation in running waters using Blackfly communities (Diptera, Simuliidae): Can habitat quality be predicted from land use?

Based on benthic macroinvertebrate samples from 57 sites of streams in the European Central Highlands (Ecoregion 9; Illies (1978). Limnofauna Europaea, Stuttgart), the composition and the abundance of Simuliid species were analysed in relation to hydromorphological and land use parameters. Sampling sites were located at two stream types differing in catchment geology, stream morphology and channel width. Land use data were taken from the official German information system for cartography and topography (ATKIS) and the German River Habitat Survey. Land use categories suitable to describe the sampling sites were ‘agricultural land’, ‘urban’ and near-natural areas. Hydromorphological parameters of the sites were recorded using the AQEM site protocol (AQEM Consortium (2002). Manual for the application of the AQEM system. A comprehensive method to assess European streams using benthic macroinvertebrates, developed for the purpose of the Water Framework Directive. EVK1-CT1999-00027, Version 1.0. Available via the Internet from www.aqem.de). Relevant parameters controlling Simuliid distribution in streams were the mineral substrates and the biotic microhabitats. Blackfly larvae and pupae were sampled at each site for 15 min. Statistical analysis was performed by CANOCO^® (Ter Braak & Smilauer (1997). CANOCO Version 4.5. Biometrics Plant Research International, Wageningen, The Netherlands) using redundancy analysis (RDA).

Our results show a stream type-specific composition of the Blackfly fauna. The analyses reveal sensitivity of the Simuliid species to morphological degradation, which is indicated by the shift in the longitudinal zonation of the Simuliid communities. Especially, Prosimulium hirtipes (Fries, 1824) and Simulium argyreatum Meigen, 1838 are typical representatives of headwater streams. While they seem to indicate undisturbed conditions of this stream type and react sensitively to the degradation of stream habitats, Simulium ornatum Meigen, 1818 and Simulium equinum (Linnaeus, 1758) are more tolerant to stream degradation.

On catchment scale, ‘% natural forest’ and ‘% agricultural land use’ illustrate the degree of degradation of the two selected stream types. ‘Average stream depth’ and ‘relation riffles/pools’ account for hydromorphological degradation reflected by Simuliid species on the smaller reach scale. The analysis of habitat quality revealed that ‘% woody debris’ represents an important parameter of morphological degradation reflected by the Blackfly community.     

Analysis of spatial water quality and stream networks in the southern Cotswolds during and after the drought of 1976

A study of water chemistry changes and stream network changes during and immediately after the 1976 drought is made in an area to the north and east of Bristol. In particular, contrasts are made between the Cotswold Limestone dip slope and the Severn Clay Vale. Immediately following the end of the drought a solute flushing effect was observed on the clay streams, whilst network extension on limestone streams incorporated new source areas and maintained higher solute concentrations throughout the post-drought period investigated.     

Spatial patterning of water quality in Biscayne Bay, Florida as a function of land use and water management

An objective classification analysis was performed on a water quality data set from 25 sites collected monthly during 1994-2003. The water quality parameters measured included: TN, TON, DIN, NH4+, NO3-, NO2-, TP, SRP, TN:TP ratio, TOC, DO, CHL A, turbidity, salinity and temperature. Based on this spatial analysis, Biscayne Bay was divided into five zones having similar water quality characteristics. A robust nutrient gradient, driven mostly by dissolved inorganic nitrogen, from alongshore to offshore in the main Bay, was a large determinant in the spatial clustering. Two of these zones (Alongshore and Inshore) were heavily influenced by freshwater input from four canals which drain the South Dade agricultural area, Black Point Landfill, and sewage treatment plant. The North Bay zone, with high turbidity, phytoplankton biomass, total phosphorus, and low DO, was affected by runoff from five canals, the Munisport Landfill, and the urban landscape. The South Bay zone, an embayment surrounded by mangrove wetlands with little urban development, was high in dissolved organic constituents but low in inorganic nutrients. The Main Bay was the area most influenced by water exchange with the Atlantic Ocean and showed the lowest nutrient concentrations. The water quality in Biscayne Bay is therefore highly dependent of the land use and influence from the watershed.     

Land use and land cover classification using phenological variability from MODIS vegetation in the Upper Pangani River Basin,Eastern Africa

In arid and semi-arid areas, evaporation fluxes are the largest component of the hydrological cycle, with runoff coefficient rarely exceeding 10%. These fluxes are a function of land use and land management and as such an essential component for integrated water resources management. Spatially distributed land use and land cover (LULC) maps distinguishing not only natural land cover but also management practices such as irrigation are therefore essential for comprehensive water management analysis in a river basin. Through remote sensing, LULC can be classified using its unique phenological variability observed over time. For this purpose, sixteen LULC types have been classified in the Upper Pangani River Basin (the headwaters of the Pangani River Basin in Tanzania) using MODIS vegetation satellite data. Ninety-four images based on 8 day temporal and 250 m spatial resolutions were analyzed for the hydrological years 2009 and 2010. Unsupervised and supervised clustering techniques were utilized to identify various LULC types with aid of ground information on crop calendar and the land features of the river basin. Ground truthing data were obtained during two rainfall seasons to assess the classification accuracy. The results showed an overall classification accuracy of 85%, with the producer’s accuracy of 83% and user’s accuracy of 86% for confidence level of 98% in the analysis. The overall Kappa coefficient of 0.85 also showed good agreement between the LULC and the ground data. The land suitability classification based on FAO-SYS framework for the various LULC types were also consistent with the derived classification results. The existing local database on total smallholder irrigation development and sugarcane cultivation (large scale irrigation) showed a 74% and 95% variation respectively to the LULC classification and showed fairly good geographical distribution. The LULC information provides an essential boundary condition for establishing the water use and management of green and blue water resources in the water stress Pangani River Basin.     

山地城市河流土地利用结构对水质的影响--以重庆市为例

以重庆主城区6条次级河流为研究区域,运用遥感和地理信息系统计算研究区土地利用构成,借助相关性分析和冗余分析等数理统计手段,分析监测断面汇水区内不同尺度土地利用结构与水质指标间的相关关系.结果表明:研究区土地利用结构以建设用地和林地为主,未利用地和农业用地所占面积比例较少;研究区土地利用结构对各水质指标有重要影响,其中建设用地和农业用地对河流水质恶化具有明显的作用,河流沿岸林地布局能显著改善水质,但随着雨季的到来林地将成为硝态氮的来源.冗余分析进一步证实土地利用类型对水环境有一定影响.研究成果对重庆市河流水环境管理具有重要的实际指导意义,并可为山地城市河流水环境研究提供借鉴.     

Simulating daily, monthly and annual water balances in a land surface model using alternative root water uptake schemes

Hydrological simulations at multi-temporal time scales by a widely used land surface model (LSM) are investigated under contrasting vegetation and meteorological conditions. Our investigation focuses particularly on the effects of two different representations of root water uptake and root profile on simulated evapotranspiration (ET) and soil moisture by the Integrated BIosphere Simulator (IBIS). For this purpose, multi-year eddy covariance measurements, collected at four flux-tower sites across North America, were used to gauge IBIS simulations with: (a) its standard version (IBIS2.1), in which static root water uptake (RWU) and root profile schemes are incorporated; and (b) a modified version in which dynamic RWU and root profile schemes replaces the static schemes used in the standard version. Overall, our results suggest that the modified version of the model performs more realistically than the standard version, particularly when high atmospheric demand for evaporation is combined with high atmospheric vapour pressure deficit and low soil water availability. The overall correlation between simulated and measured monthly ET rates at the simulated sites reached 0.87 and 0.91 for the standard and the modified versions, respectively. Our results also show that the incorporation of the dynamic RWU in IBIS yields improved simulations of ET under very dry conditions, when soil moisture falls down to very low levels. This suggests that adequate representations of vegetation responses to drought are needed in LSMs as many state of the art climate models projections of future climate indicate more frequent and/or more intense drought events occurring in some regions of the globe. Our analysis also highlighted the urgent need for adequate methodologies to correct field measurements that exhibit energy imbalances in order to provide rigorous assessments of land surface model simulations of heat and mass exchanges between the land surface and the atmosphere.     

Spatial variability associated with shifting land use: Water quality and sediment metals in La Parguera, Southwest Puerto Rico

Development in southwest Puerto Rico, as in many areas of the Caribbean, is outpacing the ability of upland flora, salt flats, and mangroves to capture sediments and intercept and transform nutrients. A comparative study to examine the effects of development on near-shore water quality in La Parguera, Puerto Rico, was initiated in 1998. Total suspended solids were significantly higher in the vicinity of developing areas compared to reference areas. Chlorophyll-a measurements near of the wastewater treatment plant averaged two times the level of other areas. The overall average concentrations of copper, chromium, nickel, and zinc in sediments collected from salt flats exceeded values reported to cause impairment of biological systems. Marine sediments near more developed locations had the highest metal concentrations, suggesting a greater transport in this area. Natural resources are the primary attraction in this area; therefore, protection of near-shore resources should receive greater attention in land use planning.     

A simple and rapid method to relate land cover and river flow rate to river nutrient concentration

The quantification of diffuse input loads of nutrients to rivers is a challenge due to limited observed data. This study aimed to develop a simple model that can relate in-stream nutrient concentrations due to diffuse sources with land cover categories within a catchment affecting a river reach. A previously developed point-diffuse model was used to distinguish the diffuse nutrient signature within South African Department of Water Affairs historical monitoring flow and water quality data for selected river gauges. The diffuse signature was related to land cover categories within respective catchments using Principal Component Analysis (PCA), and influential land cover categories were used to construct land cover models relating land cover categories with in-stream nutrient concentrations. Generally, the land cover categories affecting diffuse signatures of nutrients as indicated by PCA were expected. Using land cover information, the developed land cover models performed well in re-creating the diffuse in-stream nutrient signature as determined by the point-diffuse model.     

The influence of land use patterns on water quality at multiple spatial scales in a river system

The influence of land use patterns on water quality in a river system is scale‐dependent. In this study, a four‐order hierarchical arrangement method was used to select water sampling sites and to delineate sub‐basins in the Daliao River Basin, China. The 20 sub‐basins were classified into four spatial scales that represented four different stream orders. Pearson correlation analysis was used to quantify relationships between land use composition and the river's physical‐chemical variables for all samples collected. This analysis showed that the presence of forest cover was associated with higher water quality at the scale of the whole basin. The scale effects of land use patterns on water quality were then examined using stepwise multiple regression analysis that compared different land use types with water quality variables. The results from this analysis showed that urban areas, as opposed to forest areas, became the most significant contributors of water pollutants when scale effects were considered. The influence of urban land cover on water pollution was significantly higher at larger scales. The lack of a significant regression correlation for the forest land use type at smaller scales revealed that forest located upstream of the Daliao River Basin did not provide a buffer for improved water quality. Further analysis showed that this result could be because of disproportionate spatial distributions for forest and urban land use types. The topographic characteristics of sub‐basins, such as average slope (S) and size (A), were determined to be secondary explanatory variables that affected land use impacts on stream water quality. Areas with steep slopes were associated with increased water oxygenation, whereas areas with flatter slopes were associated with higher concentrations of pollutants. These results are significant because they can provide a better understanding of the appropriate spatial scale required for effective river basin management in the future. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Land use/land cover change and implications for ecosystems services in the Likangala River Catchment,Malawi

Likangala River catchment in Zomba District of Southern Malawi is important for water resources, agriculture and provides many ecosystem services. Provisioning ecosystem services accrued by the populations within the catchment include water, fish, medicinal plants and timber among others. In spite of its importance, the River catchment is under threat from anthropogenic activities and land use change. This paper studies land uses and land cover change in the catchment and how the changes have impacted on the ecosystem services. Landsat 5 and 8 images (1984, 1994, 2005 and 2013) were used to map land cover change and subsequent inventorying of provisioning ecosystem services. Participatory Geographic Information Systems and Focus group discussions were conducted to identify provisioning ecosystems services that communities benefit from the catchment and indicate these on the map.Post classification comparisons indicate that since 1984, there has been a decline in woodlands from 135.3 km² in 1984 to 15.5 km² in 2013 while urban areas increased from 9.8 km² to 23.8 km² in 2013. Communities indicated that provisioning ecosystems services such as forest products, wild animals and fruits and medicinal plants have been declining over the years. In addition, evidence of catchment degradation through waste disposal, illegal sand mining, deforestation and farming on marginal lands were observed. Population growth, urbanization and demand for agricultural lands have contributed to this land use and land cover change. The study suggests addressing catchment degradation through integrated method where an ecosystems approach is used. Thus, both the proximate and underlying driving factors of land-use and land cover change need to be addressed in order to sustainably reduce ecosystem degradation.     

Modeling the climatic effects of the land use/cover change in eastern China

This study aims to quantify the contribution of land use/cover change (LUCC) during the last three decades to climate change conditions in eastern China. The effects of farmland expansion in Northeast China, grassland degradation in Northwest China, and deforestation in South China were simulated using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model in addition to the latest actual land cover datasets. The simulated results show that when forestland is converted to farmland, the air temperature decreased owing to an increase in surface albedo in Northeast China. The climatic effect of grassland degradation on the Loess Plateau was insignificant because of the negligible difference in albedo between grassland and cropland. In South China, deforestation generally led to a decrease in temperature. Furthermore, the temperature decrease caused by the increase in albedo counteracted the warming effects of the evapotranspiration decrease, so the summer temperature change was not significant in South China. Excluding the effects of urbanization in the North China Plain, the LUCC effects across the entire region of East China presented an overall cooling trend. However, the variation in temperature scale and magnitude was less in summer than that in winter. This result is due mainly to the cooling caused by the increase in albedo offset partly by the increase in temperature caused by the decrease in evaporation in summer. Summer precipitation showed a trend of increasing–decreasing–increasing from southeast to northwest after LUCC, which was induced mainly by the decrease in surface roughness and cyclone circulations appearing northwest of Northeast China, in the middle of the Loess Plateau, and in Yunnan province at 700 hPa after forests were converted into farmland. All results will be instructive for understanding the influence of LUCC on regional climate and future land planning in practice.     

Environmental and land use factors affecting phosphate hysteresis patterns of stream water during flood events (Carpathian Foothills,Poland)

Flood events play a substantial role in the circulation of catchment phosphate (PO₄^3?). The purpose of the research was to analyze the factors determining PO₄^3? hysteresis patterns (direction and width) during four types of floods: short and long rainfall floods and snowmelt floods on frozen and thawed soil. The research took place in small catchments (forested, agricultural, mixed‐use) in the Carpathian Foothills in Poland. Anticlockwise hysteresis was identified in the forested catchment during short and long rainfall floods. Under the same conditions, the clockwise direction was observed in the agricultural catchment. In the mixed‐use catchment, the direction of PO₄^3? hysteresis loops was various, driven by the share of water flowing from each part of the catchment. For snowmelt floods, the PO₄^3? hysteresis pattern was similar in all the streams studied (usually clockwise). The direction of PO₄^3? hysteresis loops depends on water circulation patterns, which are determined by the different influx times of particular runoff components. The stream recharge mechanism during a flood event is affected both by the factor initiating the event (precipitation, snowmelt) as well as by land use in the given catchment. Hysteresis loop width was determined by the pool of PO₄^3? in a given catchment during the time period immediately preceding a flood event as well as by the quantity of PO₄^3? flushed out of the soil. The greater a catchment's pool of PO₄^3? and the greater its ability to flush PO₄^3? out of the soil and into surface flow, the wider the hysteresis loops. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aquatic prey subsidies to riparian spiders in a stream with different land use types

Land use related habitat degradation in freshwater ecosystems has considerably increased over the past decades, resulting in effects on the aquatic and the riparian communities. Previous studies, mainly in undisturbed systems, have shown that aquatic emergent insects contribute substantially to the diet of riparian predators. To evaluate the effect of land use on aquatic prey subsidies of riparian spiders, we performed a longitudinal study from June to August 2012 along a first order stream (Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany) covering three land use types: forest, meadow and vineyard. We determined the contribution of aquatic and terrestrial resources to the diet of web-weaving (Tetragnathidae spp.) and ground-dwelling (Pardosa sp.) riparian spiders using stable isotope analyses of aquatic emergent insects and terrestrial arthropods. The contribution of aquatic and terrestrial sources differed between Tetragnathidae spp. and Pardosa sp. as well as among land use types. Tetragnathidae spp. consumed 80–100% of aquatic insects in the meadows and 45–65% in the forest and vineyards. Pardosa sp. consumed 5–15% of aquatic insects in the forest, whereas the proportions of aquatic and terrestrial sources were approximately 50% in the meadow and vineyard. Thus, aquatic emergent insects are an important subsidy to riparian spiders and land use is likely to affect the proportion of aquatic sources in the spider diet.