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• 1. [Article] The effects of land use on mineral flat wetland hydrologic processes in lowland agricultural catchments

  Hydrologic processes within mineral flat wetlands, along with their connections to groundwater and downstream surface water in lowland agricultural catchments are poorly understood, particularly under ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: The effects of land use on mineral flat wetland hydrologic processes in lowland agricultural catchments Author: Marshall, Sarah M. (Sarah Marie) Hydrologic processes within mineral flat wetlands, along with their connections to groundwater and downstream surface water in lowland agricultural catchments are poorly understood, particularly under different land uses. In the three field studies included in this thesis, we examined infiltration, wetland hydroperiod, groundwater recharge dynamics, surface runoff generation, and water quality in mineral flat wetlands using a combination of soil and hydrometric measurements, stable isotope tracers, and water chemistry analysis. Our overarching objectives were to examine, for mineral flat wetlands under native prairie, farmed grassland, and restored prairie land cover: 1) how different land management influences infiltration and wetland hydroperiod at the plot scale, 2) the effects of land use on seasonal groundwater-surface water dynamics at the field scale, and 3) seasonal variation in runoff sources and nutrient transport from native prairie and farmed wetlands at the small catchment scale. At the plot scale, our results suggest that edaphic factors, particularly those related to soil structure, are strongly associated with wetland infiltration and overall hydroperiod across least-altered prairie, farmed, and restored prairie mineral flat wetlands. The hydroperiod metrics we examined were generally more sensitive to level of site disturbance than land use alone. At the field scale, our results indicate that, in spite of land use differences and slight variations in soil stratigraphy, many similarities exist in overall wetland hydroperiod, water sources and evaporation rates for mineral flat wetlands in the Willamette Valley lowlands. Isotopic evidence suggests that the greatest degree of groundwater-surface water mixing occurs in the upper 0.5 m of the saturated soil profile across sites under all land uses. Finally, at the small catchment scale, farmed wetland runoff was isotopically similar to field surface water for most of the wet season, indicating that saturation excess was an important runoff generation process. Prairie wetland runoff was isotopically similar to upstream water throughout the winter, and briefly similar to shallow groundwater and surface water within the wetland in mid-spring. Throughout the wet season, elevated nitrate, sulfate, and chloride concentrations were observed in groundwater and surface water at the farm site, and deeper groundwater at the prairie site. Upstream-downstream runoff chemistry remained similar throughout the wet season at the prairie site. Farm site runoff chemistry reflected the dominant water source within the farm field throughout the wet season. Our findings suggest that, while surface water pathways dominate runoff from wetland flats under farm land use, large wetland flat fields have a high potential to absorb, store, and process nutrients and agrochemicals from on-site and nearby off-site chemical inputs. Mineral flats that maintain wetland hydrology in spite of farm use represent a unique balance between agricultural production and preservation of some of the water storage and delay, and water quality-related ecosystem services once provided at a much larger scale in the Willamette Valley lowlands. We anticipate that results of this work will lead to better understanding of key site-scale edaphic and hydrologic factors to consider when prioritizing and managing sites for restoration, and how site disturbance under a variety of land uses may impact different hydrologic processes and components of the wetland hydroperiod. Additionally, our results provide a better understanding of how land use affects seasonal runoff generation processes in mineral flat wetlands, and the water quality implications of modifying groundwater and surface water connectivity between mineral flats and surrounding surface drainage networks. Title: The effects of land use on mineral flat wetland hydrologic processes in lowland agricultural catchments Author: Marshall, Sarah M. (Sarah Marie) Hydrologic processes within mineral flat wetlands, along with their connections to groundwater and downstream surface water in lowland agricultural catchments are poorly understood, particularly under different land uses. In the three field studies included in this thesis, we examined infiltration, wetland hydroperiod, groundwater recharge dynamics, surface runoff generation, and water quality in mineral flat wetlands using a combination of soil and hydrometric measurements, stable isotope tracers, and water chemistry analysis. Our overarching objectives were to examine, for mineral flat wetlands under native prairie, farmed grassland, and restored prairie land cover: 1) how different land management influences infiltration and wetland hydroperiod at the plot scale, 2) the effects of land use on seasonal groundwater-surface water dynamics at the field scale, and 3) seasonal variation in runoff sources and nutrient transport from native prairie and farmed wetlands at the small catchment scale. At the plot scale, our results suggest that edaphic factors, particularly those related to soil structure, are strongly associated with wetland infiltration and overall hydroperiod across least-altered prairie, farmed, and restored prairie mineral flat wetlands. The hydroperiod metrics we examined were generally more sensitive to level of site disturbance than land use alone. At the field scale, our results indicate that, in spite of land use differences and slight variations in soil stratigraphy, many similarities exist in overall wetland hydroperiod, water sources and evaporation rates for mineral flat wetlands in the Willamette Valley lowlands. Isotopic evidence suggests that the greatest degree of groundwater-surface water mixing occurs in the upper 0.5 m of the saturated soil profile across sites under all land uses. Finally, at the small catchment scale, farmed wetland runoff was isotopically similar to field surface water for most of the wet season, indicating that saturation excess was an important runoff generation process. Prairie wetland runoff was isotopically similar to upstream water throughout the winter, and briefly similar to shallow groundwater and surface water within the wetland in mid-spring. Throughout the wet season, elevated nitrate, sulfate, and chloride concentrations were observed in groundwater and surface water at the farm site, and deeper groundwater at the prairie site. Upstream-downstream runoff chemistry remained similar throughout the wet season at the prairie site. Farm site runoff chemistry reflected the dominant water source within the farm field throughout the wet season. Our findings suggest that, while surface water pathways dominate runoff from wetland flats under farm land use, large wetland flat fields have a high potential to absorb, store, and process nutrients and agrochemicals from on-site and nearby off-site chemical inputs. Mineral flats that maintain wetland hydrology in spite of farm use represent a unique balance between agricultural production and preservation of some of the water storage and delay, and water quality-related ecosystem services once provided at a much larger scale in the Willamette Valley lowlands. We anticipate that results of this work will lead to better understanding of key site-scale edaphic and hydrologic factors to consider when prioritizing and managing sites for restoration, and how site disturbance under a variety of land uses may impact different hydrologic processes and components of the wetland hydroperiod. Additionally, our results provide a better understanding of how land use affects seasonal runoff generation processes in mineral flat wetlands, and the water quality implications of modifying groundwater and surface water connectivity between mineral flats and surrounding surface drainage networks. Close