Identifying Sources of Suspended Sediment using Radionuclides in an Agricultural Watershed in South Central Wisconsin

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jasmeet Lamba ◽  
Anita M Thompson ◽  
John C Panuska ◽  
K G Karthikeyan
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Agricultural Watershed ◽  
South Central

Using Atmospheric Fallout Radionuclides 137Cs and 210Pbxs to Identify Sources of Suspended Sediment in an Agricultural Watershed

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 529-538
Author(s):  
Jasmeet Lamba ◽  
K. G. Karthikeyan ◽  
Anita M. Thompson ◽  
Kritika Malhotra ◽  
Natalie L. H. Huisman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Agricultural Watershed ◽  
Atmospheric Fallout ◽  
Fallout Radionuclides ◽  
South Central ◽  
Mixed Land Use

Abstract. The use of atmospheric fallout radionuclides as sediment tracers can provide valuable information on sediment transport processes within watersheds. Research was conducted in cropland and mixed land use subwatersheds of the Pleasant Valley watershed (50 km2) in south-central Wisconsin to identify sources of suspended sediment using cesium-137 (137Cs) and excess lead-210 (210Pbxs). In the cropland-dominated subwatershed, contributions to suspended sediment from in-stream and agricultural sources ranged from 36% to 81% and from 19% to 64%, respectively. In the mixed land use subwatershed, contributions to suspended sediment from in-stream and agricultural sources ranged from 68% to 100% and from 0% to 32%, respectively. The relative contribution to suspended sediment from agricultural sources was greater in the cropland subwatershed compared to the mixed land use subwatershed. The phosphorus (P) concentration in suspended sediment and fine sediment deposited on the streambed varied from 601 to 1545 mg kg-1, and cropland areas were the dominant sources of P-enriched sediment in streams. The legacy P and sediment in this watershed can result in a lag time between implementation of best management practices and attainment of desired water quality improvement. Depending on the fingerprinting properties considered (metals vs. fallout radionuclides) and suspended sediment source considerations, the source apportionment results may vary. Keywords: Fallout radionuclides, Legacy sediment, Phosphorus, Sediment fingerprinting, Soil erosion, Streambanks.

scholarly journals Conceptual model of sedimentgraph from flood events in a small agricultural watershed

2008 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazimierz Banasik ◽  
J. Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Model ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Sediment Concentration ◽  
Agricultural Watershed ◽  
Sediment Flux ◽  
Flood Events ◽  
Rainfall Events ◽  
Sediment Routing ◽  
Suspended Sediment Flux ◽  
Lag Times

Conceptual model of sedimentgraph from flood events in a small agricultural watershed A procedure for predicting the sediment graph (i.e. the suspended sediment flux), from a small river catchment by heavy rainfall, has been developed using the concept of an instantaneous unit hydrograph (IUH) and dimensionless sediment concentration distribution (DSCD). A formula for instantaneous unit sedimentgraph (IUSG) is presented, and a procedure for estimating the sediment routing coefficient, which is a key parameter of the IUSG, based on measured data of rainfall-runoff-suspended sediment is applied. Field data from a small, field sized agricultural basin, lacated in center of Illinois has been used for analizing lag times for runoff (LAG) and sediment yield (LAGs). Assumptions about sediment generated during rainfall events are discussed.

scholarly journals Watershed Response to Legacy Phosphorus and Best Management Practices in an Impacted Agricultural Watershed in Florida, U.S.A.

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 977
Author(s):  
Yogesh P. Khare ◽  
Rajendra Paudel ◽  
Ruscena Wiederholt ◽  
Anteneh Z. Abiy ◽  
Thomas Van Lent ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Best Management Practices ◽  
Environmental Planning ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Soil Phosphorus ◽  
Agricultural Watershed ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Evaluation Tool ◽  
South Central ◽  
P Sources

Soil phosphorus (P) built up due to past management practices, legacy P, in the Lake Okeechobee Watershed (LOW) in south-central Florida, U.S.A., is often discussed as the root cause of lake eutrophication. Improvement of the lake’s water quality requires the identification of critical P sources and quantifying their contributions. We performed a global sensitivity analysis of the Watershed Assessment Model (WAM), a common evaluation tool in LOW environmental planning, using the Morris method. A pre-calibrated WAM setup (Baseline) of the LOW sub-watershed, Taylor Creek Nubbin Slough (TCNS), was used as a test case. Eight scenarios were formulated to estimate the contributions of various P sources. The Morris analysis indicated that total phosphorus (TP) loads were highly sensitive to legacy P in improved pastures, the major land use covering 46.2% of TCNS. The scenario modeling revealed that legacy P, inorganic fertilizers, and other sources contribute 63%, 10%, and 32%, respectively, to the Baseline TP load of 111.3 metric tons/y to the lake. Improved pastures, dairies, citrus, and field crops are the top TP load contributors. Our results have important implications for water quality improvement plans in the LOW and highlighted the need for accurate spatial mapping of legacy P and incorporation of such information in modeling efforts for watersheds demonstrating legacy P problems.

scholarly journals Evaluation of the effects of some watershed characteristics on water and suspended sediment yield in agricultural and forest dominated watersheds

2021 ◽  
Vol 145 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 249-261
Author(s):  
Tark Çtgez ◽  
Refik Karagül ◽  
Mehmet Özcan
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Sediment Yield ◽  
Geological Structure ◽  
Agricultural Watershed ◽  
Forested Watershed ◽  
Extreme Rainfall Event ◽  
Total Suspended Sediment ◽  
Watershed Characteristics ◽  
Suspended Sediment Yield

Topography, geological structure and land use play a determinative role in the streamflow and total suspended sediment yield of watersheds having similar climate, soil and vegetation characteristics. In order to facilitate sustainable water resource management and effective land use planning, there is an increasing need for research investigating the effects of these factors. This study was carried out in forested and agricultural dominated subwatersheds of the Big Melen watershed in the Western Black Sea Region of Turkey. Hazelnut plantations are grown on most of the agricultural areas in both watersheds. The forested watershed has a steep topography and its geological structure consists of sandstone-mudstone and sedimentary rock. The agricultural watershed area is larger and unlike the forested watershed, there is argillaceous limestone in its geological structure. The precipitation, streamflow and total suspended sediment yield in the watersheds were measured for two years. The total precipitation of the study area over the two years was 2217.3 mm. The water yield of the forested watershed was 867.6 mm, while that of the agricultural watershed was 654.9 mm. In the two years, the total suspended sediment transported from the forested watershed was 19.51 t ha<sup>-1</sup> and from the agricultural watershed 7.70 t ha<sup>-1</sup>. However, except for the high values measured after an extreme rainfall event, the unit surface suspended sediment yield of the agricultural watershed was found to be higher than that of the forested watershed. These findings showed that watershed characteristics such as slope, geological structure and rainfall intensity may be more effective on the streamflow and total suspended sediment yield of the watersheds than land use.

scholarly journals Fluvial Suspended Sediment Transfer and Lacustrine Sedimentation of Recent Flood Turbidites in Proglacial Eklutna Lake, Western Chugach Mountains, Alaska

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik Schiefer ◽  
Jason Geck ◽  
Johnse Ostman ◽  
Nicholas McKay ◽  
Nore Praet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Spatial Modelling ◽  
Current Strength ◽  
Sediment Delivery ◽  
Annual Variations ◽  
South Central ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Sediment Transfer

Suspended sediment delivery and deposition in proglacial lakes is generally sensitive to a wide range of hydrometeorologic and geomorphic controls. High discharge conditions are of particular importance in many glaciolacustrine records, with individual floods potentially recorded as distinctive turbidites. We used an extensive network of surface sediment cores and hydroclimatic monitoring data to analyze recent flood turbidites and associated sediment transfer controls over instrumental periods at Eklutna Lake, western Chugach Mountains, Alaska. Close to a decade of fluvial data from primary catchment tributaries show a dominating influence of discharge on sediment delivery, with various interconnections with other related hydroclimatic controls. Multivariate fluvial models highlight and help quantify some complexities in sediment transfer, including intra-annual variations, meteorological controls, and the influence of subcatchment glacierization. Sediments deposited in Eklutna Lake during the last half century are discontinuously varved and contain multiple distinctive turbidites. Over a 30-year period of stratigraphic calibration, we correlate the four thickest flood turbidites (1989, 1995, 2006, 2012) to specific regional storms. The studied turbidites correlate with late-summer and early-autumn rainstorms with a magnitude of relatively instantaneous sedimentation 3 to 15 times greater than annual background accumulation. Our network of sediment core data captured the broad extent and sediment variability among the study turbidites and background sediment yield. Within-lake spatial modelling of deposition quantifies variable rates of downlake thinning and sediment focusing effects, and highlights especially large differences between the thickest flood turbidites and background sedimentation. This we primarily relate to strongly contrasting dispersion processes controlled by inflow current strength and turbidity. Sediment delivery is of interest for this catchment because of reservoir and water supply operations. Furthermore, although smaller floods may not be consistently represented, the lake likely contains a valuable proxy record of regional flooding proximal to major population centers of south-central Alaska including Anchorage.

scholarly journals Comparison of Acoustic to Optical Backscatter Continuous Measurements of Suspended Sediment Concentrations and Their Characterization in an Agriculturally Impacted River

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 981 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zacharie Sirabahenda ◽  
André St-Hilaire ◽  
Simon C. Courtenay ◽  
Michael R. van den Heuvel
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Drainage Basin ◽  
Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler ◽  
Agricultural Watershed ◽  
Indirect Measurements ◽  
Sediment Budgets ◽  
Suspended Sediment Concentrations ◽  
Frequency Monitoring ◽  
Current Profiler ◽  
The Relationship

The increased soil loss in an agricultural watershed raises challengers for river water quality and a reliable automated monitoring for suspended sediment concentrations (SSC) is crucial to evaluate sediment budgets variation in systems. The aims of this study were (1) to test if an acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) would give similar results to turbidity probe measurements as a high frequency monitoring tool for suspended sediment; and (2) to analyze the relationship between sediment drivers and SSC in a typical agricultural drainage basin. The acoustic and optical backscatter sensors were used to collect SSC data during the ice-free seasons of four consecutive years in the Dunk River (PEI, Canada). The slopes of the relationships between the two SSC indirect measurements were not significantly different than 1. Correlations between SSC and hydro-meteorological variables showed that the high SSC values were more associated with the streamflow and water velocity than precipitation. This study highlighted the great potential of ADCP for the continuous monitoring of suspended sediment in an agricultural watershed. For summer periods the prevalence of clockwise hysteresis (74.1% of measured rainstorm events with SSC > 25 mg L−1) appeared related to rainstorm behaviors.

scholarly journals Suspended sediment dynamics at different time scales in the Loushui River, south-central China

CATENA ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 136 ◽  
pp. 152-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liying Sun ◽  
Ming Yan ◽  
Qiangguo Cai ◽  
Haiyan Fang
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
Sediment Dynamics ◽  
Central China ◽  
South Central ◽  
Different Time Scales
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