Recent growth in the capabilities of unmanned aerial vehicles and systems (UASs) as airborne platforms for collecting environmental data has been very rapid. There are now ample examples in the literature of UASs being deployed to map fine‐scale vegetation, glacial, soil and atmospheric conditions. The purported advantages of UASs are their ability to collect spatial data at lower cost, lower risk, higher resolution and higher frequency than ground surveys or satellite platforms. In this specific study, whether or not obtaining high‐resolution UAS imagery was advantageous for identifying an intermittent stream network was determined by comparing it with coarse‐scale satellite imagery collected for the same purpose. It was also determined if the UAS imagery could be an improvement to Global Positioning System acquired ground‐truth points for classifying an intermittent stream network across the same large‐scale satellite image. The UAS‐acquired and satellite‐acquired imageries were derived from a visible spectrum camera capable of 2‐cm resolution and multispectral SPOT‐5 with 10‐m resolution, respectively. The SPOT‐5 imagery with its relatively coarse resolution could not always detect the narrow intermittent stream, which was well resolved in the UAS imagery. When a classified UAS image was applied as a training area for the SPOT‐5 image, the identification of the stream network and accuracy of the satellite imagery classification did not necessarily improve. UASs have the potential to revolutionize hydrological research the same way that geographic information systems did three decades ago. A final goal of the paper is to provide insight into the advantages and disadvantages of deploying a UAS for this kind of research. © 2015 Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada. Hydrological Processes. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Wetlands have the capacity to retain nitrogen and phosphorus and are thereby often considered a viable option for improving water quality at local scales. However, little is known about the cumulative influence of wetlands outside of floodplains, i.e., non-floodplain wetlands (NFWs), on surface water quality at watershed scales. Such evidence is important to meet global, national, regional, and local water quality goals effectively and comprehensively. In this critical review, we synthesize the state of the science about the watershed-scale effects of NFWs on nutrient-based (nitrogen, phosphorus) water quality. We further highlight where knowledge is limited in this research area and the challenges of garnering this information. On the basis of previous wetland literature, we develop emerging concepts that assist in advancing the science linking NFWs to watershed-scale nutrient conditions. Finally, we ask, “Where do we go from here?” We address this question using a 2-fold approach. First, we demonstrate, via example model simulations, how explicitly considering NFWs in watershed nutrient modeling changes predicted nutrient yields to receiving waters–and how this may potentially affect future water quality management decisions. Second, we outline research recommendations that will improve our scientific understanding of how NFWs affect downstream water quality.

A dry climate, the prevalence of small depressions, and the lack of a well‐developed drainage network are characteristics of environments with extremely variable contributing areas to runoff. These types of regions arguably present the greatest challenge to properly understanding catchment streamflow generation processes. Previous studies have shown that contributing area dynamics are important for streamflow response, but the nature of the relationship between the two is not typically understood. Furthermore, it is not often tested how well hydrological models simulate contributing area. In this study, the ability of a semidistributed hydrological model, the PDMROF configuration of Environment Canada's MESH model, was tested to determine if it could simulate contributing area. The study focused on the St. Denis Creek watershed in central Saskatchewan, Canada, which with its considerable topographic depressions, exhibits wide variation in contributing area, making it ideal for this type of investigation. MESH‐PDMROF was able to replicate contributing area derived independently from satellite imagery. Daily model simulations revealed a hysteretic relationship between contributing area and streamflow not apparent from the less frequent remote sensing observations. This exercise revealed that contributing area extent can be simulated by a semi‐distributed hydrological model with a scheme that assumes storage capacity distribution can be represented with a probability function. However, further investigation is needed to determine if it can adequately represent the complex relationship between streamflow and contributing area that is such a key signature of catchment behavior.

Topography influences hydrological processes that in turn affect biogeochemical export to surface water on forested landscapes. The differences in long-term average annual dissolved organic carbon (DOC), organic and inorganic nitrogen [NO 3 À -N, dissolved organic nitrogen (DON)], and phosphorus (total dissolved phosphorus, TDP) export from catchments in the Algoma Highlands of Ontario, Canada, with similar climate, geology, forest and soil were established. Topographic indicators were designed to represent topographically regulated hydrological processes that influence nutrient export, including (1) hydrological storage potential (i.e. effects of topographic flats/depressions on water storage) and (2) hydrological flushing potential (i.e. effects of topographic slopes on potential for variable source area to expand and tap into previously untapped areas). Variations in NO 3 À -N export among catchments could be explained by indicators representing both hydrological flushing potential (91%, p < 0.001) and hydrological storage potential (65%, p < 0.001), suggesting the importance of hydrological flushing in regulating NO 3 À -N export as well as surface saturated areas in intercepting NO 3 À -N-loaded runoff. In contrast, hydrological storage potential explained the majority of variations among catchments in DON (69%, p < 0.001), DOC (94%, p < 0.001) and TDP (82%, p < 0.001) export. The lower explanatory power of DON (about 15% less) compared with that of DOC and TDP suggests another mechanism influencing N export, such as controls related to alternative fates of nitrogen (e.g. as gas). This study shows that simple topographic indicators can be used to track nutrient sources, sinks and their transport and export to surface water from catchments on forest landscapes.

Determining catchment responses to climate signals gives insight into the potential effects of climate change. This study tested the hypothesis that a 28‐year time series of water yields from four headwater catchments in the Turkey Lakes Watershed (TLW), Ontario contains signals of non‐stationary climate change and naturally occurring stationary climate oscillations and that the effects of these signals are greater in catchments with lower rates of change in water loading and lower water storage capacity (small wetlands). Non‐stationary trends explained 0%, 18%, 44%, and 52% of the variance in the water yields of the four catchments. Wavelet analysis using Morlet wavelets identified stationary responses at multiple temporal scales, increasing the amount of variance explained to 56%, 63%, 76%, and 81% when combining stationary and non‐stationary models. The catchment with low water loading and low water storage was most sensitive to non‐stationary and stationary signals, suggesting that these catchments act as sentinels to detect climatic signals. Wavelet coherence analysis revealed correlations between global climate oscillation indices and water yield. The Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) index was strongly correlated with both temperature and precipitation (R2 = 0.46, P < 0.001 and R2 of 0.34, P < 0.001, respectively). Temperature in the TLW increased by 0.067 °C per year from 1981 to 2008, but approximately 0.037 °C of this increase can be explained by the AMO index. While it is likely that anthropogenic climate change impacts water yields, it is important to account for multiple nested climate oscillations to avoid exaggerating its effects. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Despite occupying a small fraction of the landscape, fluvial networks are disproportionately large emitters of CO2 and CH4, with the potential to offset terrestrial carbon sinks. Yet the extent of this offset remains uncertain, because current estimates of fluvial emissions often do not integrate beyond individual river reaches and over the entire fluvial network in complex landscapes. Here we studied broad patterns of concentrations and isotopic signatures of CO2 and CH4 in 50 streams in the western boreal biome of Canada, across an area of 250,000 km2. Our study watersheds differ starkly in their geology (sedimentary and shield), permafrost extent (sporadic to extensive discontinuous) and land cover (large variability in lake and wetland extents). We also investigated the effect of wildfire, as half of our study streams drained watersheds affected by megafires that occurred 3 years prior. Similar to other boreal regions, we found that stream CO2 concentrations were primarily associated with greater terrestrial productivity and warmer climates, and decreased downstream within the fluvial network. No effects of recent wildfire, bedrock geology or land cover composition were found. The isotopic signatures suggested dominance of biogenic CO2 sources, despite dominant carbonate bedrock in parts of the study region. Fluvial CH4 concentrations had a high variability which could not be explained by any landscape factors. Estimated fluvial CO2 emissions were 0.63 (0.09–6.06, 95% CI) and 0.29 (0.17–0.44, 95% CI) g C m−2 year−1 at the landscape scale using a stream network modelling and a mass balance approach, respectively, a small but potentially important component of the landscape C balance. These fluvial CO2 emissions are lower than in other northern regions, likely due to a drier climate. Overall, our study suggests that fluvial CO2 emissions are unlikely to be sensitive to altered fire regimes, but that warming and permafrost thaw will increase emissions significantly.

[1] Headwater catchment hydrology and biogeochemistry are influenced by climate, including linear trends (nonstationary signals) and climate oscillations (stationary signals). We used an analytical framework to detect nonstationary and stationary signals in yearly time series of nutrient export [dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), nitrate (NO 3 À -N), and total dissolved phosphorus (TDP)] in forested headwater catchments with differential water loading and water storage potential at the Turkey Lakes Watershed in Ontario, Canada. We tested the hypotheses that (1) climate has nonstationary and stationary effects on nutrient export, the combination of which explains most of the variation in nutrient export; (2) more metabolically active nutrients (e.g., DON, NO 3 À -N, and TDP) are more sensitive to these signals; and (3) catchments with relatively low water loading and water storage capacity are more sensitive to these signals. Both nonstationary and stationary signals were identified, and the combination of both explained the majority of the variation in nutrient export data. More variation was explained in more labile nutrients (DON, NO 3 À -N, and TDP), which were also more sensitive to climate signals. The catchment with low-water storage potential and low water loading was most sensitive to nonstationary and stationary climatic oscillations, suggesting that these hydrologic features are characteristic of the most effective sentinels of climate change. The observed complex links between climate change, climatic oscillations, and water nutrient fluxes in headwater catchments suggest that climate may have considerable influence on the productivity and biodiversity of surface waters, in addition to other drivers such as atmospheric pollution.Citation: Mengistu, S. G., C. G. Quick, and I. F. Creed (2013), Nutrient export from catchments on forested landscapes reveals complex nonstationary and stationary climate signals, Water Resour.

Although it is well known that the vast majority of the time only a portion of any watershed contributes run‐off to the outlet, this extent is rarely documented. Also, the power law form of the streamflow and contributing area (Q‐Ac) relationship has been known for a half century, but it is uncommon for it to be quantified, and time series of contributing area extensive enough to calculate its frequency distribution are almost non‐existent. Data from the Canadian Prairies, where there are extensive estimates of contributing area during the median annual flood, imply that the power law coefficient for any Q‐Ac curve is a function of flow magnitude and return period. These data also suggest that regional flood frequency curves are a construct of Q‐Ac curves from individual basins. This paper will discuss research that attempted to reproduce the Q‐Ac curves for the La Salle River Watershed with a semidistributed numerical hydrological model, MESH‐PDMROF. The model simulated streamflow reasonably well (Nash Sutcliffe values = 0.62) compared with published examples of comparable models applied in the region. Estimates of the coefficient and exponent of the Q‐Ac power law function ranged from 0.08–0.14 and 0.9–1.12, respectively. These exponent values were lower than those of regional flood frequency curves and support the theory that regional flood frequency curves are a construct of Q‐Ac curves. Simulations of the area contributing to the median annual flood were lower (0.3) than those derived from independent topographic analysis (0.9) described in earlier literature though there is uncertainty in both these estimates. This uncertainty was extended across the flood frequency distribution and may be too large to definitively verify the study hypothesis.