HR: 0800h
AN: H31C-0402    [Abstracts]
TI: The Mica Creek Experimental Watershed: An Outdoor Laboratory for the Investigation of Hydrologic Processes in a Continental/Maritime Mountainous Environment
AU: * Link, T E
EM: tlink@uidaho.edu
AF: University of Idaho, Dept. of Forest Resources 6th and Line Street, Moscow, ID 83844-1133 United States
AU: Gravelle, J
EM: jag@pineorchard.com
AF: University of Idaho, Environmental Sciences Program 6th and Line Street, Moscow, ID 83844-1133 United States
AU: Hubbart, J
EM: jahubbart@earthlink.net
AF: University of Idaho, Dept. of Forest Resources 6th and Line Street, Moscow, ID 83844-1133 United States
AU: Warnsing, A
EM: warn0503@uidaho.edu
AF: University of Idaho, Dept. of Forest Resources 6th and Line Street, Moscow, ID 83844-1133 United States
AU: Du, E
EM: du1021@uidaho.edu
AF: University of Idaho, Environmental Sciences Program 6th and Line Street, Moscow, ID 83844-1133 United States
AU: Boll, J
EM: jboll@uidaho.edu
AF: University of Idaho, Dept. of Biological and Agricultural Engineering JML 81B, Moscow, ID 83844-2060 United States
AU: Brooks, E
EM: broo2789@uidaho.edu
AF: University of Idaho, Dept. of Biological and Agricultural Engineering JML 81B, Moscow, ID 83844-2060 United States
AU: Cundy, T
EM: Terry.Cundy@potlatchcorp.com
AF: Potlatch Corporation, 805 Mill Road PO Box 1388, Lewiston, ID 83501-1388 United States
AB: Experimental catchments have proven to be extremely useful for investigations focused on fundamental hydrologic processes and on the impacts of land cover change on hydrologic regimes and water quality. Recent studies have illustrated how watershed responses to experimental treatments vary greatly between watersheds with differing physical, ecological and hydroclimatic characteristics. Meteorological and hydrological data within catchments are needed to help identify how hydrologic mechanisms may be altered by land cover alterations, and to both constrain and develop spatially-distributed physically based models. Existing instrumentation at the Mica Creek Experimental Watershed (MCEW) in northern Idaho is a fourth-order catchment that is undergoing expansion to produce a comprehensive dataset for model development and testing. The experimental catchments encompass a 28 km$^{2}$ area spanning elevations from 975 to 1725 m msl. Snow processes dominate the hydrology of the catchment and climate conditions in the winter alternate between cold, dry continental and warm, moist maritime weather systems. Landcover is dominated by 80 year old second growth conifer forests, with partially cut (thinned) and clear-cut sub-catchments. Climate and precipitation data are collected at a SNOTEL site, three primary, and seven supplemental meteorological stations stratified by elevation and canopy cover. Manual snow depth measurements are recorded every 1-2 weeks during snowmelt, stratified by aspect, elevation and canopy cover. An air temperature transect spans three second-order sub-catchments to track air temperature lapse rate dynamics. Precipitation gauge arrays are installed within thinned and closed-canopy stands to track throughfall and interception loss. Nine paired and nested sub-catchments are monitored for flow, temperature, sediment, and nutrients. Hydroclimatic data are augmented by LiDAR and hyperspectral imagery for determination of canopy and topographic structure. Results will serve as a key dataset to assess how canopy conditions affect surface hydrology in complex snow-dominated catchments in the intermountain western U.S.
DE: 1854 Precipitation (3354)
DE: 1860 Runoff and streamflow
DE: 1863 Snow and ice (1827)
DE: 1866 Soil moisture
DE: 1878 Water/energy interactions
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting