Adrian A. Harpold

Changes in snowpack accumulation and ablation in the intermountain west

[1]xa0Recent observations have documented declining snow water equivalent (SWE) and earlier melt in the coastal Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, and climate models suggest that warming temperatures will decrease snowpack storage in the higher-elevation mountain ranges of interior western North America. To date, however, observations of changing SWE or snowmelt have been limited to the state of Colorado in the intermountain west (IMW), defined here as the Rio Grande, Colorado River, and Great Basins, which supply water to the driest regions of North America. We used daily SNOTEL data collected between 1984 and 2009 combined with the nonparametric regional Kendall test to demonstrate significant and widespread changes in the duration of snow cover in these river basins. Daily SNOTEL data demonstrated that basin average maximum SWE occurred as early as 7 March (Lower Colorado River Basin) and as late as 13 April (Upper Colorado, Yampa, and White River Basins). Although significant increases in winter temperature (T) were widespread, there were minimal changes in the day of maximum accumulation and no indications from SWE to winter precipitation ratios (SWE:P) and winter T observations that a transition from snow to rain had occurred. While there was little change in day of maximum accumulation, the duration of snow cover decreased in 11 of 13 drainage regions, and snowmelt center of mass (SM50) advanced 1 to 4 days per decade in 6 of 13 regions. There were significant trends toward a faster SM50 and shorter duration of snow cover in the highest-elevation regions (>2800 m) of the Colorado River Basin, suggesting that winter T and P may not be the primary driver of change. Our results show that the IMW hydroclimate is both spatially and temporally variable, with few changes in winter T and P in the Great Basin and drier and warmer winters in the Colorado River and Rio Grande Basins. The changes in snowmelt timing also were variable, with a shorter SM50 and less maximum SWE in the Colorado River and Rio Grande Basins. The variable response of snowpacks in the IMW to widespread warming highlights the need for additional research into the mass and energy balance of these continental snowpacks.

Recent tree die‐off has little effect on streamflow in contrast to expected increases from historical studies

Recent bark beetle epidemics have caused regional-scale tree mortality in many snowmelt-dominated headwater catchments of western North America. Initial expectations of increased streamflow have not been supported by observations, and the basin-scale response of annual streamflow is largely unknown. Here we quantified annual streamflow responses during the decade following tree die-off in eight infested catchments in the Colorado River headwaters and one nearby control catchment. We employed three alternative empirical methods: (i) double-mass comparison between impacted and control catchments, (ii) runoff ratio comparison before and after die-off, and (iii) time-trend analysis using climate-driven linear models. In contrast to streamflow increases predicted by historical paired catchment studies and recent modeling, we did not detect streamflow changes in most basins following die-off, while one basin consistently showed decreased streamflow. The three analysis methods produced generally consistent results, with time-trend analysis showing precipitation was the strongest predictor of streamflow variability (R2u2009=u200974–96%). Time-trend analysis revealed post-die-off streamflow decreased in three catchments by 11–29%, with no change in the other five catchments. Although counter to initial expectations, these results are consistent with increased transpiration by surviving vegetation and the growing body of literature documenting increased snow sublimation and evaporation from the subcanopy following die-off in water-limited, snow-dominated forests. The observations presented here challenge the widespread expectation that streamflow will increase following beetle-induced forest die-off and highlight the need to better understand the processes driving hydrologic response to forest disturbance.

Stream water carbon controls in seasonally snow-covered mountain catchments: impact of inter-annual variability of water fluxes, catchment aspect and seasonal processes

AbstractnStream water carbon (C) export is one important pathway for C loss from seasonally snow-covered mountain ecosystems and an assessment of overarching controls is necessary. However, such assessment is challenging because changes in water fluxes or flow paths, seasonal processes, as well as catchment specific characteristics play a role. For this study we elucidate the impact of: (i) changes in water flux (by comparing years of variable wetness), (ii) catchment aspect [north-facing (NF) vs. south-facing (SF)] and (iii) season (snowmelt vs. summer) on all forms of dissolved stream water C [dissolved organic C (DOC), chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) and dissolved inorganic C (DIC)] in forested catchments within the Valles Caldera National Preserve, New Mexico. The significant correlation between annual water and C fluxes (e.g. DOC r2xa0=xa00.83, pxa0<xa00.02) confirms annual stream water discharge as the overarching control on C efflux, likely from a well-mixed ground water reservoir as indicated by previous research. However, CDOM exhibited a dominantly terrestrial fluorescence signature (59–71xa0%) year round, signaling a strong riparian and near stream soil control on CDOM composition. During snowmelt, the role of water as C transporter was superimposed on its control as C reservoir, when the NF stream transported significantly more soil C (40xa0% DOC, 56xa0% DIC) than the SF stream as a result of hillslope flushing. Inter-annual variations in winter precipitation were paramount in regulating annual stream C effluxes, e.g., reducing C effluxes three-fold after a dry (relative to wet) winter season. During the warmer summer months % dissolved oxygen saturation decreased, δ13CDIC increased and CDOM assumed a more microbial signature, consistent with heterotrophic respiration in the stream and riparian soils. As a result of stream C incubation and soil respiration,

Snowmelt rate dictates streamflow

P_{{{text{CO}}_{2} }}

Sensitivity of soil water availability to changing snowmelt timing in the western U.S.

PCO2 increased up to 12 times atmospheric values leading to substantial degassing.

The Hydrological Effects of Lateral Preferential Flow Paths in a Glaciated Watershed in the Northeastern USA

A North American epidemic of mountain pine beetle (MPB) has disturbed over 5 million ha of forest containing headwater catchments crucial to water resources. However, there are limited observations of MPB effects on partitioning of precipitation between vapor loss and streamflow, and to our knowledge these fluxes have not been observed simultaneously following disturbance. We combined eddy covariance vapor loss (V), catchment streamflow (Q), and stable isotope indicators of evaporation (E) to quantify hydrologic partitioning over 3 years in MPB-impacted and control sites. Annual control V was conservative, varying only from 573 to 623 mm, while MPB site V varied more widely from 570 to 700 mm. During wet periods, MPB site V was greater than control V in spite of similar above-canopy potential evapotranspiration (PET). During a wet year, annual MPB V was greater and annual Q was lower as compared to an average year, while in a dry year, essentially all water was partitioned to V. Ratios of 2H and 18O in stream and soil water showed no kinetic evaporation at the control site, while MPB isotope ratios fell below the local meteoric water line, indicating greater E and snowpack sublimation (Ss) counteracted reductions in transpiration (T) and sublimation of canopy-intercepted snow (Sc). Increased E was possibly driven by reduced canopy shading of shortwave radiation, which averaged 21 W m−2 during summer under control forest as compared to 66 W m−2 under MPB forest. These results show that abiotic vapor losses may limit widely expected streamflow increases.

Stream discharge measurement using a large-scale particle image velocimetry (LSPIV) prototype

Declining mountain snowpack and earlier snowmelt across the western United States has implications for downstream communities. We present a possible mechanism linking snowmelt rate and streamflow generation using a gridded implementation of the Budyko framework. We computed an ensemble of Budyko streamflow anomalies (BSA) using Variable Infiltration Capacity model-simulated evapotranspiration, potential evapotranspiration, and estimated precipitation at 1/16° resolution from 1950-2013. BSA was correlated with simulated baseflow efficiency (r2u2009=u20090.64) and simulated snowmelt rate (r2u2009=u20090.42). The strong correlation between snowmelt rate and baseflow efficiency (r2u2009=u20090.73) links these relationships and supports a possible streamflow generation mechanism wherein greater snowmelt rates increase subsurface flow. Rapid snowmelt may thus bring the soil to field capacity, facilitating below-root-zone percolation, streamflow, and a positive BSA. Previous works have shown that future increases in regional air temperature may lead to earlier, slower snowmelt, and hence, decreased streamflow production via the mechanism proposed by this work.

Humidity determines snowpack ablation under a warming climate

Airborne-based Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) offers the potential to measure snow depth and vegetation structure at high spatial resolution over large extents and thereby increase our ability to quantify snow water resources. Here we present airborne LiDAR data products at four Critical Zone Observatories (CZO) in the Western United States: Jemez River Basin, NM, Boulder Creek Watershed, CO, Kings River Experimental Watershed, CA, and Wolverton Basin, CA. We make publicly available snow depth data products (1 m2 resolution) derived from LiDAR with an estimated accuracy of <30 cm compared to limited in situ snow depth observations.