Map of water table in Solomon River valley, Waconda Lake to Solomon, north-central Kansas, May 1980

Ninety hectares in a treed fen in north central Alberta were drained to improve growth of stagnant black spruce (Piceamariana (Mill.) B.S.P.) and tamarack (Larixlaricina (Du Roi) K. Koch) stands. Installation of 30-, 40-, 50-, and 60-m ditch spacings resulted in a lowering of the average water table by 79, 66, 56, and 73 cm, respectively. The results and the groundwater level criteria used (drainage norm, 40 cm; flood duration limit, 14 days) indicated that the 50-m ditch spacing was hydrologically the most appropriate one for this area. Given the relatively high hydraulic conductivity of the area, it is believed the 30-m spacing was too narrow and resulted in an excessively low average water table. The 60-m spacing was also overeffective, but in this case, overeffectiveness was attributed more to "edge effects" i.e., to site factors such as the proximity to uplands and the small size of upstream source areas, than to the distance between ditches. The results illustrate the importance, for ditch network design purposes, of taking into account hydrologic conditions both within and well beyond the boundaries of an area proposed to be drained. Peat subsidence after drainage appeared to be related to the average drop in water table level and amounted to about 5 cm•a−1.

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Predictive simulation of alternatives for managing the water resources of North Fork Solomon River Valley between Kirwin Dam and Waconda Lake, north-central Kansas

10.3133/wri844249 ◽

1984 ◽

Keyword(s):

Water Resources ◽

River Valley ◽

North Central ◽

Predictive Simulation ◽

North Fork

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Depth to bedrock and classification of unconsolidated materials above the water table in stratified-drift areas of part of the Pootatuck River Valley, Newtown, Connecticut

10.3133/i1702 ◽

1986 ◽

Keyword(s):

Water Table ◽

River Valley

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Effects of drainage on substrate temperature and phenology of some trees and shrubs in an Alberta peatland

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x87-019 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

pp. 97-104 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

V. J. Lieffers ◽

R. L. Rothwell

Keyword(s):

Water Table ◽

Black Spruce ◽

North Central ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

Dwarf Birch ◽

Summer Temperatures ◽

The Mean ◽

Study Sites ◽

Individual Trees ◽

Trees And Shrubs

A 50-ha portion of an intermediate fen in north central Alberta was drained in 1984. Study sites were established in the drained area and in an adjacent undrained area. In each site, seasonal water table depth and substrate and air temperatures were monitored. The drainage lowered the water table from 20 to 50 cm compared with the adjacent undrained site. Substrate of the drained area warmed above 0 °C slightly later than the undrained area but maximum summer temperatures were higher in the drained site. Temperatures in 1985 at the 10-cm depth of the drained site peaked in early August at 15–16 °C, 3–4 °C higher than the undrained site. Forty-five black spruce (Piceamariana (Mill.) B.S.P.), 45 tamarack (Larixlaricina (Du Roi) K. Koch), and 25 dwarf birch (Betulapumila L.) were tagged and examined twice weekly. For tamarack and dwarf birch, flowering and bud flush were significantly earlier by 2–6 days in the drained site. For black spruce, flowering was earlier in the drained site; bud flush, however, was earlier in the undrained site in 1985 but there were no differences between sites in 1986. For both black spruce and tamarack, the mean date at which individual trees reached 50% of total leader elongation was earlier in the drained site in both 1984 and 1985.

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