Location: Southeast Watershed Research
Title: Hydrologic impacts of extreme precipitation events on a low gradient coastal plain watershedAuthor
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Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 3/1/2018 Publication Date: 7/23/2018 Citation: Bosch, D.D. 2018. Hydrologic impacts of extreme precipitation events on a low gradient coastal plain watershed. Meeting Abstract. Pending Volume/Page. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Extreme climatic events, particularly those involving extreme precipitation, can have dramatic effects on the landscape. These effects can be buffered or enhanced by the characteristics of the landscape. The Little River Watershed (LRW) at the headwaters of the Suwannee Basin in south central Georgia of the United States has been studied by the Southeast Watershed Research Lab of the USDA Agricultural Research Service since 1968. Data are collected on the LRW to quantify the long-term relationships between precipitation and streamflow. Watersheds in this region are characterized by low-gradient stream channels with wide and heavily vegetated floodplains. The long-term nature of the data set provide an opportunity to characterize the impact of extreme precipitation events in particular on this unique landscape. The characteristics of these coastal plain watersheds can buffer the impacts of extreme events during dry seasons of the year but offer less buffering during wet seasons. Observed precipitation and streamflow were analyzed to develop probability distribution curves for each. Extreme rainfall and streamflow events were then related back to seasonal patterns to separate the effects of large springtime events from summer hurricane related events. Lastly, a comparison was made between the impacts of the extreme events on a primarily agricultural watershed to those observed in an urban watershed. |
