Delineation of riparian vegetation from Landsat multi‐temporal imagery using PCA

A deficiency in crucial digital data, such as vegetation cover, in remote regions is a challenging issue for water management and planning, especially for areas undergoing rapid development, such as mining in the Pilbara, Western Australia. This is particularly relevant to riparian vegetation, which provides important ecological services and, as such, requires regional protection. The objective of this research was to develop an approach to riparian vegetation mapping at a regional scale using remotely sensed data. The proposed method was based on principal component analysis applied to multi‐temporal Normalized Difference Vegetation Index datasets derived from Landsat TM 5 imagery. To delimit the spatial extent of riparian vegetation, a thresholding method was required and various thresholding algorithms were tested. The accuracy of results was estimated for various Normalized Difference Vegetation Index multi‐temporal datasets using available ground‐truth data. The combination of a 14‐dry‐date dataset and Kittler's thresholding method provided the most accurate delineation of riparian vegetation.     

Mapping groundwater‐dependent ecosystems using remote sensing measures of vegetation and moisture dynamics

Protection of groundwater‐dependent ecosystems (GDEs) is an important criterion in sustainable groundwater management, particularly when human water consumption is in competition with environmental water demands; however, the delineation of GDEs is commonly a challenging task. The Groundwater‐dependent Ecosystem Mapping (GEM) method proposed here is based on interpretation of the land surface response to the drying process derived from combined changes in two multispectral indices, the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index and the Normalised Difference Wetness Index, both derived from Landsat imagery. The GEM method predicts three land cover classes used for delineation of potential GDEs: vegetation with permanent access to groundwater; vegetation with diminishing access to groundwater; and water bodies that can persist through a prolonged dry period. The method was applied to a study site in the Ellen Brook region of Western Australia, where a number of GDEs associated with localised groundwater, diffuse discharge zones, and riparian vegetation were known. The estimated accuracy of the method indicated a good agreement between the predicted and known GDEs; Producer's accuracy was calculated as up to 91% for some areas. The method is most applicable for mapping GDEs in regions with a distinct drying period. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mapping Potential Groundwater‐Dependent Ecosystems for Sustainable Management

Ecosystems which rely on either the surface expression or subsurface presence of groundwater are known as groundwater‐dependent ecosystems (GDEs). A comprehensive inventory of GDE locations at an appropriate management scale is a necessary first‐step for sustainable management of supporting aquifers; however, this information is unavailable for most areas of concern. To address this gap, this study created a two‐step algorithm which analyzed existing geospatial and remote sensing data to identify potential GDEs at both state/province and aquifer/basin scales. At the state/province scale, a geospatial information system (GIS) database was constructed for Texas, including climate, topography, hydrology, and ecology data. From these data, a GDE index was calculated, which combined vegetative and hydrological indicators. The results indicated that central Texas, particularly the Edwards Aquifer region, had highest potential to host GDEs. Next, an aquifer/basin scale remote sensing‐based algorithm was created to provide more detailed maps of GDEs in the Edwards Aquifer region. This algorithm used Landsat ETM+ and MODIS images to track the changes of NDVI for each vegetation pixel. The NDVI dynamics were used to identify the vegetation with high potential to use groundwater—such plants remain high NDVI during extended dry periods and also exhibit low seasonal and inter‐annual NDVI changes between dry and wet seasons/years. The results indicated that 8% of natural vegetation was very likely using groundwater. Of the potential GDEs identified, 75% were located on shallow soil averaging 45 cm in depth. The dominant GDE species were live oak, ashe juniper, and mesquite.     

Groundwater–surface water interactions in a large semi‐arid floodplain: implications for salinity management

Flow regulation and water diversion for irrigation have considerably impacted the exchange of surface water between the Murray River and its floodplains. However, the way in which river regulation has impacted groundwater–surface water interactions is not completely understood, especially in regards to the salinization and accompanying vegetation dieback currently occurring in many of the floodplains. Groundwater–surface water interactions were studied over a 2 year period in the riparian area of a large floodplain (Hattah–Kulkyne, Victoria) using a combination of piezometric surface monitoring and environmental tracers (Cl⁻, δ²H, and δ¹⁸O). Despite being located in a local and regional groundwater discharge zone, the Murray River is a losing stream under low flow conditions at Hattah–Kulkyne. The discharge zone for local groundwater, regional groundwater and bank recharge is in the floodplain within ∼1 km of the river and is probably driven by high rates of transpiration by the riparian Eucalyptus camaldulensis woodland. Environmental tracers data suggest that the origin of groundwater is principally bank recharge in the riparian zone and a combination of diffuse rainfall recharge and localized floodwater recharge elsewhere in the floodplain. Although the Murray River was losing under low flows, bank discharge occurred during some flood recession periods. The way in which the water table responded to changes in river level was a function of the type of stream bank present, with point bars providing a better connection to the alluvial aquifer than the more common clay‐lined banks. Understanding the spatial variability in the hydraulic connection with the river channel and in vertical recharge following inundations will be critical to design effective salinity remediation strategies for large semi‐arid floodplains. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Relationships between riparian evapotranspiration and groundwater depth along a semiarid irrigated river valley

Evapotranspiration (ET) from riparian vegetation can be difficult to estimate due to relatively abundant water supply, spatial vegetation heterogeneity, and interactions with anthropogenic influences such as shallower groundwater tables, increased salinity, and nonpoint source pollution induced by irrigation. In semiarid south-eastern Colorado, reliable ET estimates are scarce for the riparian corridor that borders the Arkansas River. This work investigates relationships between the riparian ecosystem along the Arkansas River and an underlying alluvial aquifer using ET estimates from remotely sensed data and modelled water table depths. Results from a calibrated, finite-difference groundwater model are used to estimate weekly water table fluctuations in the riparian ecosystem from 1999 to 2009, and estimates of ET are calculated using the Operational Simplified Surface Energy Balance (SSEBop) model with over 200 Landsat scenes covering over 30 km² of riparian ecosystem along a 70-km stretch of the river. Comparison of calculated monthly SSEBop ET to estimated alfalfa reference ET from local micrometeorological station data indicated statistically significant high linear correspondence (R² = .87). Daily calculated SSEBop ET showed statistically significant moderate linear correspondence with data from a local weighing lysimeter (R² = .59). Simulated monthly SSEBop ET values were larger in drier years compared with wetter years, and ET variability was also larger in drier years. Peak ET most commonly occurred during the month of June for all 11 years of analysis. Relationships between ET and water table depth showed that peak monthly ET was highest when groundwater depths were less than about 3 m, and ET values were significantly lower for groundwater depths greater than 3 m. Negative sample Spearman correlation highlighted riparian corridor locations where ET increased as a result of decreased groundwater depths across years with different hydroclimatic conditions. This study shows how a combination of remotely sensed riparian ET estimates and a regional groundwater model can improve our understanding of linkages between riparian consumptive use and near-river groundwater conditions influenced by irrigation return flow and different climatic drivers.     

Short‐ and long‐term evapotranspiration rates at ecological restoration sites along a large river receiving rare flow events

Many large rivers around the world no longer flow to their deltas, due to ever greater water withdrawals and diversions for human needs. However, the importance of riparian ecosystems is drawing increasing recognition, leading to the allocation of environmental flows to restore river processes. Accurate estimates of riparian plant evapotranspiration (ET) are needed to understand how the riverine system responds to these rare events and achieve the goals of environmental flows. In 2014, historic environmental flows were released into the Lower Colorado River at Morelos Dam (Mexico); this once perennial but now dry reach is the final stretch to the mighty Colorado River Delta. One of the primary goals was to supply native vegetation restoration sites along the reach with water to help seedlings establish and boost groundwater levels to foster the planted saplings. Patterns in ET before, during, and after the flows are useful for evaluating whether this goal was met and understanding the role that ET plays in this now ephemeral river system. Here, diurnal fluctuations in groundwater levels and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data were used to compare estimates of ET specifically at 3 native vegetation restoration sites during 2014 planned flow events, and MODIS data were used to evaluate long‐term (2002–2016) ET responses to restoration efforts at these sites. Overall, ET was generally 0–10 mm d^?1 across sites, and although daily ET values from groundwater data were highly variable, weekly averaged estimates were highly correlated with MODIS‐derived estimates at most sites. The influence of the 2014 flow events was not immediately apparent in the results, although the process of clearing vegetation and planting native vegetation at the restoration sites was clearly visible in the results.     

Effect of an environmental flow on vegetation growth and health using ground and remote sensing metrics

Understanding the effectiveness of environmental flow deliveries along rivers requires monitoring vegetation. Monitoring data are often collected at multiple spatial scales. For riparian vegetation, optical remote sensing methods can estimate growth responses at the riparian corridor scale, and field-based measures can quantify species composition; however, the extent to which these different measures are duplicative or complementary is important to understand when planning monitoring programmes with limited resources. In this study, we analysed riparian vegetation growth in the delta of the Colorado River in response to an experimental pulse flow. Our goal was to compare ground-based measurements of vegetation structure and composition with satellite-based Landsat radiometric variables, such as the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). We made this comparison in 21 transects following the delivery of 131.8 million cubic meters (mcm) of water in the stream channel during the spring of 2014 as a pulse flow and 38.4 mcm as base flows. Vegetation cover increased 14% and NDVI increased 0.02 (15%) by October 2015, and both variables returned to pre-pulse flow values in October 2016. Observed changes in vegetation structure and composition did not persist after the second year. The highest increase in vegetation cover in October 2014 and October 2015 resulted from species that could respond rapidly to additional water such as reeds (Arundo donax and Phragmites australis), cattail (Typha domingensis), and herbaceous plants. Dominant shrubs, saltcedar (Tamarix spp.) and arrowweed (Pluchea sericea), both indicative of nonrestored habitats showed variable increases in cover, and native trees (Salicaceae family) presented low increases (1%). The strong NDVI–vegetation cover relationship indicates that NDVI is appropriate to detect changes at the riparian corridor scale but needs to be complemented with ground data to determine the contributions by different species to the observed trends.     

Local‐scale and watershed‐scale determinants of summertime urban stream temperatures

The influence of urbanization on the temperature of small streams is widely recognized, but these effects are confounded by the great natural variety of their contributing watersheds. To evaluate the relative importance of local‐scale and watershed‐scale factors on summer temperatures in urban streams, hundreds of near‐instantaneous temperature measurements throughout the central Puget Lowland, western Washington State, were collected during a single 2‐h period in August in each of the years 1998–2001. Stream temperatures ranged from 8.9 to 27.5 °C, averaging 15.4 °C. Pairwise correlation coefficients between stream temperature and four watershed variables (total watershed area and the watershed percentages of urban development, upstream lakes, and permeable glacial outwash soils as an indicator of groundwater exchange) were uniformly very low. Akaike's information criterion was applied to determine the best‐supported sets of watershed‐scale predictor variables for explaining the variability of stream temperatures. For the full four‐year dataset, the only well‐supported model was the global model (using all watershed variables); for the most voluminous single‐year (1999) data, Akaike's information criterion showed greatest support for per cent outwash (Akaike weight of 0.44), followed closely by per cent urban development + per cent outwash, per cent lake area only, and the global model. Upstream lakes resulted in downstream warming of up to 3 °C; variability in riparian shading imposed a similar temperature range. Watershed urbanization itself is not the most important determining factor for summer temperatures in this region; even the long‐recognized effects of riparian shading can be no more influential than those imposed by other local‐scale and watershed‐scale factors. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How important is groundwater availability and stream perenniality to riparian and floodplain tree growth?

Riparian vegetation is important for stream functioning and as a major landscape feature. For many riparian plants, shallow groundwater is an important source of water, particularly in areas where rainfall is low, either annually or seasonally, and when extended dry conditions prevail for all or part of the year. The nature of tree water relationships is highly complex. Therefore, we used multiple lines of evidence to determine the water sources used by the dominant tree species Eucalyptus camaldulensis (river red gum), growing in riparian and floodplain areas with varying depth to groundwater and stream perenniality. Dendrometer bands were used to measure diel, seasonal, and annual patterns of tree water use and growth. Water stable isotopes (δ²H and δ¹⁸O) in plant xylem, soil water, and groundwater were measured to determine spatial and temporal patterns in plant water source use. Our results indicated riparian trees located on relatively shallow groundwater had greater growth rates, larger diel responses in stem diameter, and were less reactive to extended dry periods, than trees in areas of deep groundwater. These results were supported by isotope analysis that suggested all trees used groundwater when soil water stores were depleted at the end of the dry season, and this was most pronounced for trees with shallow groundwater. Trees may experience more frequent periods of water deficit stress and undergo reduced productivity in scenarios where water table accessibility is reduced, such as drawdown from groundwater pumping activities or periods of reduced rainfall recharge. The ability of trees to adapt to changing groundwater conditions may depend on the speed of change, the local hydrologic and soil conditions as well as the species involved. Our results suggest that E. camaldulesis growing at our study site is capable of utilizing groundwater even to depths >10 m, and stream perenniality is likely to be a useful indicator of riparian tree use of groundwater.     

Inter‐annual variability in the effects of riparian woodland on micro‐climate,energy exchanges and water temperature of an upland Scottish stream

The influence of riparian woodland on stream temperature, micro‐climate and energy exchange was investigated over seven calendar years. Continuous data were collected from two reaches of the Girnock Burn (a tributary of the Aberdeenshire Dee, Scotland) with contrasting land use characteristics: (1) semi‐natural riparian forest and (2) open moorland. In the moorland reach, wind speed and energy fluxes (especially net radiation, latent heat and sensible heat) varied considerably between years because of variable riparian micro‐climate coupled strongly to prevailing meteorological conditions. In the forested reach, riparian vegetation sheltered the stream from meteorological conditions that produced a moderated micro‐climate and thus energy exchange conditions, which were relatively stable between years. Net energy gains (losses) in spring and summer (autumn and winter) were typically greater in the moorland than the forest. However, when particularly high latent heat loss or low net radiation gain occurred in the moorland, net energy gain (loss) was less than that in the forest during the spring and summer (autumn and winter) months. Spring and summer water temperature was typically cooler in the forest and characterised by less inter‐annual variability due to reduced, more inter‐annually stable energy gain in the forested reach. The effect of riparian vegetation on autumn and winter water temperature dynamics was less clear because of the confounding effects of reach‐scale inflows of thermally stable groundwater in the moorland reach, which strongly influenced the local heat budget. These findings provide new insights as to the hydrometeorological conditions under which semi‐natural riparian forest may be effective in mitigating river thermal variability, notably peaks, under present and future climates. © 2014 The Authors. Hydrological Processes published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Geologic and hydrologic settings for development of freshwater lenses in arid lands

Satellite observations were used to test the validity of previously identified favourable conditions for the formation of freshwater lenses, identify additional potential occurrences, and model modern potential recharge in the Raudhatain Watershed (3696) in northern Kuwait. Favourable conditions include infrequent yet intensive precipitation events, drainage depressions to collect the limited runoff, and presence of conditions (e.g. high infiltration capacity) that promote groundwater recharge and preservation (e.g. underlying saline aquifer) of infiltrating groundwater as freshwater lenses floating over saline aquifer water due to differences in density. Specifically, the following field and satellite‐based observations were noted for the Raudhatain Watershed: (1) Over ~30 precipitation events were identified from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission precipitation data (1998–2009); (2) slope is gentle (2 m/km), and the surface is largely (80%) covered by alluvial deposits with high infiltration capacities (up to 9 m/day); (3) no flows and long‐term ponding were reported at the watershed outlet or detected from Landsat thematic mapper images; (4) infiltration is high based on increases in soil moisture content (from an advanced microwave scanning radiometer) and vegetation index following large precipitation events; and (5) freshwater lenses that overlie highly saline [total dissolved solids (TDS): >35 000] unconfined aquifers underlying the watershed are absent in the southern regions, where infiltrating fresh water mixes with the less saline groundwater (TDS: <10 000). Twenty potential locations (size: 1 to 75 km²) for freshwater lens development were identified in northern Kuwait, and continuous rainfall–runoff models (Soil Water and Assessment Tool) were applied to provide a first‐order estimation of the average annual recharge in the watershed (127 × 10⁶ m³) and freshwater lenses (8.17 × 10⁶ m³). Results demonstrate the settings for enhanced opportunities for groundwater recharge, outline the amounts of and preservation conditions for the groundwater feeding the freshwater lenses, and highlight potential applications and locations of freshwater lenses in similar settings elsewhere in the Arabian Peninsula and beyond. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conceptual and numerical models for groundwater flow in an arid inland river basin

The Heihe River Basin (HRB) is an inland watershed in northwest China with a total area of approximately 130,000 km², stretching from the Qilian Mountains in the south to the oases and agricultural fields in the middle and further to the Gobi desert in the north bordering Mongolia. As part of a major ecohydrological research initiative to provide a stronger scientific underpinning for sustainable water management in arid ecosystems, a regional‐scale integrated ecological and hydrological model is being developed, incorporating the knowledge based on the results of environmental isotope tracer analysis and the multiscale observation datasets. The first step in the model development effort is to construct and calibrate a groundwater flow model for the middle and lower HRB where the oases and vegetation along the Heihe river corridor are highly dependent on groundwater. In this study, the software tool ‘Arc Hydro Groundwater’ is used to build and visualize a hydrogeological data model for the HRB that links all relevant spatiotemporal hydrogeological data in a unified geodatabase within the ArcGIS environment. From the conceptual model, a regional‐scale groundwater flow model has been developed using MODFLOW‐2005. Critical considerations in developing the flow model include the representation of mountainous terrains and fluvial valleys by individual model layers, treatment of aquifer heterogeneities across multiple scales and selection of proper observation data and boundary conditions for model calibration. This paper discusses these issues in the context of the Heihe River Basin, but the results and insights from this study will have important implications for other large, regional groundwater modelling studies, especially in arid and semiarid inland river basins. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Climate sensitivity of water use by riparian woodlands at landscape scales

Semi-arid riparian woodlands face threats from increasing extractive water demand and climate change in dryland landscapes worldwide. Improved landscape-scale understanding of riparian woodland water use (evapotranspiration, ET) and its sensitivity to climate variables is needed to strategically manage water resources, as well as to create successful ecosystem conservation and restoration plans for potential climate futures. In this work, we assess the spatial and temporal variability of Cottonwood (Populus fremontii)-Willow (Salix gooddingii) riparian gallery woodland ET and its relationships to vegetation structure and climate variables for 80 km of the San Pedro River corridor in southeastern Arizona, USA, between 2014 and 2019. We use a novel combination of publicly available remote sensing, climate and hydrological datasets: cloud-based Landsat thermal remote sensing data products for ET (Google Earth Engine EEFlux), Landsat multispectral imagery and field data-based calibrations to vegetation structure (leaf-area index, LAI), and open-source climate and hydrological data. We show that at landscape scales, daily ET rates (6–10 mm day⁻¹) and growing season ET totals (400–1,400 mm) matched rates of published field data, and modelled reach-scale average LAI (0.80–1.70) matched lower ranges of published field data. Over 6 years, the spatial variability of total growing season ET (CV = 0.18) exceeded that of temporal variability (CV = 0.10), indicating the importance of reach-scale vegetation and hydrological conditions for controlling ET dynamics. Responses of ET to climate differed between perennial and intermittent-flow stream reaches. At perennial-flow reaches, ET correlated significantly with temperature, whilst at intermittent-flow sites ET correlated significantly with rainfall and stream discharge. Amongst reaches studied in detail, we found positive but differing logarithmic relationships between LAI and ET. By documenting patterns of high spatial variability of ET at basin scales, these results underscore the importance of accurately accounting for differences in woodland vegetation structure and hydrological conditions for assessing water-use requirements. Results also suggest that the climate sensitivity of ET may be used as a remote indicator of subsurface water resources relative to vegetation demand, and an indicator for informing conservation management priorities.     

Numerically modelling groundwater in an arid area with ANN‐generated dynamic boundary conditions

Groundwater is sensitive to the climate change and agricultural activities in arid and semi‐arid areas. Over the past several decades, human activities, such as groundwater extraction for irrigation, have resulted in aquifer overdraft and disrupted the natural equilibrium in these areas. Regional groundwater simulation is important to determine appropriate groundwater management policies, and numerical simulation has become the most popular method. However, most groundwater models were developed with static boundary conditions. In this research, the Minqin oasis, an arid region located in northwest China, was selected as the study area. An artificial neural network (ANN) was developed to simulate effects of weather conditions, agricultural activities and surface water on groundwater level in a dynamic boundary of the domain. Subsequently, a groundwater numerical model, named ANN‐FEFLOW model, was developed, with a dynamic boundary condition defined by the ANN model. The verifying results showed that the model has higher precision, with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0·71 m, relative error (RE) of 17·96% and R² of 0·84 relative to the great groundwater change. Furthermore, the groundwater model has higher precision than the conventional groundwater model with static boundary condition, particularly in the area near the dynamic boundary. This study demonstrated that dynamic boundaries can improve the precision of the regional groundwater model in an arid area and that ANN can provide higher accuracy prediction capability for groundwater levels with dynamic boundary. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Drip irrigation enhances shallow groundwater contribution to crop water consumption in an arid area

Shallow groundwater plays a key role in agro‐hydrological processes of arid areas. Groundwater often supplies a necessary part of the water requirement of crops and surrounding native vegetation, such as groundwater‐dependent ecosystems. However, the impact of water‐saving irrigation on cropland water balance, such as the contribution of shallow groundwater to field evapotranspiration, requires further investigation. Increased understanding of quantitative evaluation of field‐scale water productivity under different irrigation methods aids policy and decision‐making. In this study, high‐resolution water table depth and soil water content in field maize were monitored under conditions of flood irrigation (FI) and drip irrigation (DI), respectively. Groundwater evapotranspiration (ET_g) was estimated by the combination of the water table fluctuation method and an empirical groundwater–soil–atmosphere continuum model. The results indicate that daily ET_g at different growth stages varies under the two irrigation methods. Between two consecutive irrigation events of the FI site, daily ET_g rate increases from zero to greater than that of the DI site. Maize under DI steadily consumes more groundwater than FI, accounting for 16.4% and 14.5% of ET_a, respectively. Overall, FI recharges groundwater, whereas DI extracts water from shallow groundwater. The yield under DI increases compared with that under FI, with less ET_a (526 mm) compared with FI (578 mm), and irrigation water productivity improves from 3.51 kg m^?3 (FI) to 4.58 kg m^?3 (DI) through reducing deep drainage and soil evaporation by DI. These results highlight the critical role of irrigation method and groundwater on crop water consumption and productivity. This study provides important information to aid the development of agricultural irrigation schemes in arid areas with shallow groundwater.     

Estimating groundwater recharge for an arid karst system using a combined approach of time‐lapse camera monitoring and water balance modelling

Groundwater is the principal water resource in semi‐arid and arid environments. Therefore, quantitative estimates of its replenishment rate are important for managing groundwater systems. In dry regions, karst outcrops often show enhanced recharge rates compared with other surface and sub‐surface conditions. Areas with exposed karst features like sinkholes or open shafts allow point recharge, even from single rainfall events. Using the example of the As Sulb plateau in Saudi Arabia, this study introduces a cost‐effective and robust method for recharge monitoring and modelling in karst outcrops. The measurement of discharge of a representative small catchment (4.0 · 10⁴ m²) into a sinkhole, and hence the direct recharge into the aquifer, was carried out with a time‐lapse camera. During the monitoring period of two rainy seasons (autumn 2012 to spring 2014), four recharge events were recorded. Afterwards, recharge data as well as proxy data about the drying of the sediment cover are used to set up a conceptual water balance model. The model was run for 17 years (1971 to 1986 and 2012 to 2014). Simulation results show highly variable seasonal recharge–precipitation ratios between 0 and 0.27. In addition to the amount of seasonal precipitation, this ratio is influenced by the interannual distribution of rainfall events. Overall, an average annual groundwater recharge for the doline (sinkhole) catchment on As Sulb plateau of 5.1 mm has estimated for the simulation period. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Imaging Hydrological Processes in Headwater Riparian Seeps with Time‐Lapse Electrical Resistivity

Delineating hydrologic and pedogenic factors influencing groundwater flow in riparian zones is central in understanding pathways of water and nutrient transport. In this study, we combined two‐dimensional time‐lapse electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) (depth of investigation approximately 2 m) with hydrometric monitoring to examine hydrological processes in the riparian area of FD‐36, a small (0.4 km²) agricultural headwater basin in the Valley and Ridge region of east‐central Pennsylvania. We selected two contrasting study sites, including a seep with groundwater discharge and an adjacent area lacking such seepage. Both sites were underlain by a fragipan at 0.6 m. We then monitored changes in electrical resistivity, shallow groundwater, and nitrate‐N concentrations as a series of storms transitioned the landscape from dry to wet conditions. Time‐lapse ERI revealed different resistivity patterns between seep and non‐seep areas during the study period. Notably, the seep displayed strong resistivity reductions (～60%) along a vertically aligned region of the soil profile, which coincided with strong upward hydraulic gradients recorded in a grid of nested piezometers (0.2‐ and 0.6‐m depth). These patterns suggested a hydraulic connection between the seep and the nitrate‐rich shallow groundwater system below the fragipan, which enabled groundwater and associated nitrate‐N to discharge through the fragipan to the surface. In contrast, time‐lapse ERI indicated no such connections in the non‐seep area, with infiltrated rainwater presumably perched above the fragipan. Results highlight the value of pairing time‐lapse ERI with hydrometric and water quality monitoring to illuminate possible groundwater and nutrient flow pathways to seeps in headwater riparian areas.     

Groundwater recharge estimation in arid hardrock‐alluvium aquifers using combined water‐table fluctuation and groundwater balance approaches

This paper proposes an approach to estimate groundwater recharge using an optimization‐based water‐table fluctuation method combined with a groundwater balance model in an arid hardrock‐alluvium region, located at the Oman–United Arab Emirates border. We introduce an “effective hardrock thickness” term to identify the percentage of the considered hardrock thickness in which effective groundwater flow takes place. The proposed method is based upon a Thiessen polygon zoning approach. The method includes subpolygons to represent specific geologic units and to enhance the confidence of the estimated groundwater recharge. Two linear and 1 nonlinear submodels were developed to evaluate the model components for the calibration (October 1996 to September 2008) and validation (October 2008 to September 2013) periods. Long‐term annual groundwater recharge from rainfall and return flow over the model domain are estimated as 24.62 and 5.71 Mm³, respectively, while the effective groundwater flow circulation is found to occur in the upper 7% of the known hardrock thickness (42 m), confirming conclusions of previous field studies. Considering a total difference in groundwater levels between eastern and western points of the study area of the order of 220 m and a 12‐year monthly calibration period, a weighted root mean squared error in predicted groundwater elevation of 2.75 m is considered quite reasonable for the study area characterized by remarkable geological and hydrogeological diversity. The proposed approach provides an efficient and robust method to estimate groundwater recharge in regions with a complex geological setting in which interaction between fractured and porous media cannot be easily assessed.     

Using hydro‐chemograph analyses to reveal runoff generation processes in a Mediterranean catchment

The paper deals with the hydro‐chemical analysis performed in order to reveal processes, sources, paths and timing of the runoff generation in an experimental catchment representative of the hilly, terrigenous and forested watershed in the Mediterranean humid eco‐region of southern Italy. The analysis is based on the data recorded at the outlet of the catchment during 2013–2014. A mixing law procedure was applied on discharge (Q) and electrical conductivity (EC) data, by using the Q–EC end members previously collected at selected groundwater, sub‐surficial and surficial stations. In this way, we found four bound curves delimiting fields in a Q–EC plot, each with hydro‐chemograph value ranges. At annual time scale, the analysis revealed a seasonal behaviour of the hydrological response, different for the wet period, when the aquifer is recharging, and the dry periods, when the aquifer is discharging, despite frequent summer rain showers. At event time scale, the catchment seems to show the behaviour of a typical hydro‐geomorphic threshold system. We interpreted this behaviour as due to a progressive addition of water from distinctive components (i.e. deep aquifer, riparian corridor, hillslope and hollow), each with originally different mechanisms of runoff production (i.e. groundwater, groundwater ridging, saturation excess, infiltration excess and soil pipe exfiltration) and response time. During the event, the contributing areas enlarge upward the riparian corridors and the zero‐order basins, where the aforementioned components become superposed and the mechanisms interact more and more. We hypothesize that the threshold values between different states of the system are defined by the intersections of the boundary curves on the Q–EC plot. Different patterns in the Q–EC hysteretic cycles are prevalently related to the pre‐event soil saturation and groundwater contributions to stormflow and recharge mechanisms. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Water use strategies of two co‐occurring tree species in a semi‐arid karst environment

The flow of precipitation from the surface through to groundwater in karst systems is a complex process involving storage in the unsaturated zone and diffuse and preferential recharge pathways. The processes associated with this behaviour are not well understood, despite the prevalence of karst aquifers being used as freshwater supplies. As a result, uncertainty regarding the ecohydrological processes in this geological setting remains large. In response to the need to better understand the impact of woody vegetation on groundwater recharge, annual evapotranspiration (ET) rates and tree water sources were measured for two years above a shallow, fresh karst aquifer. Water use strategies of the co‐occurring Eucalyptus diversifolia subsp. diversifolia Bonpl. and Allocasuarina verticillata (Lam.) L. Johnson were investigated using a monthly water balance approach, in conjunction with measurement of the stable isotopes of water, leaf water potentials and soil matric potentials. The results suggest that it is unlikely groundwater resources are required to sustain tree transpiration, despite its shallow proximity to the soil surface, and that similarities exist between ET losses and the estimated long‐term average rainfall for this area. Irrespective of stand and morphological differences, E. diversifolia and A. verticillata ET rates showed remarkable convergence, demonstrating the ability of these co‐occurring species to maximise their use of the available precipitation, which avoids the requirement to differentiate between these species when estimating ET at a landscape scale. We conclude that the water holding capacity of porous geological substrates, such as those associated with karst systems, will play an important role in equilibrating annual rainfall variability and should be considered when assessing ecohydrological links associated with karst systems. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.