An empirical‐stochastic, event‐based program for simulating inflow from a tributary network: Framework and application to the Sacramento River basin, California

Singer, Michael Bliss; Dunne, Thomas

doi:10.1029/2003wr002725

Cited by 21 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…A similar trend is evident for Feather @ Nicholas, which apparently inherits the signal from Bear River. Flood volume decreases slightly at most EPs for Yuba River, American River and Verona, which for the latter suggests a relative increase in flood flow over the upstream Fremont Weir, as pointed out in Singer and Dunne (2004), for all but the highest AFV years. Although Yuba and American River gauges have relatively low IRI (Table II), their upstream dams, New Bullards Bar and Folsom, are capable of storing floodwaters from the latter half of the flood season and releasing them for hydroelectricity generation and irrigation in the dry season, which explains the systematic decrease in AFV for these stations at all EPs.…”

Section: Annual Trough Flowmentioning

confidence: 82%

The influence of major dams on hydrology through the drainage network of the Sacramento River basin, California

Singer

2006

River Research & Apps

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This paper reports basinwide patterns of hydrograph alteration via statistical and graphical analysis from a network of long-term streamflow gauges located various distances downstream of major dams and confluences in the Sacramento River basin in California, USA. Streamflow data from 10 gauging stations downstream of major dams were divided into hydrologic series corresponding to the periods before and after dam construction. Pre-and post-dam flows were compared with respect to hydrograph characteristics representing frequency, magnitude and shape: annual flood peak, annual flow trough, annual flood volume, time to flood peak, flood drawdown time and interarrival time. The use of such a suite of characteristics within a statistical and graphical framework allows for generalising distinct strategies of flood control operation that can be identified without any a priori knowledge of operations rules. Dam operation is highly dependent on the ratio of reservoir capacity to annual flood volume (impounded runoff index). Dams with high values of this index generally completely cut off flood peaks thus reducing time to peak, drawdown time and annual flood volume. Those with low values conduct early and late flow releases to extend the hydrograph, increasing time to peak, drawdown time and annual flood volume. The analyses reveal minimal flood control benefits from foothill dams in the lower Sacramento River (i.e. dissipation of the down-valley flood control signal). The lower part of the basin is instead reliant on a weir and bypass system to control lowland flooding. Data from a control gauge (i.e. with no upstream dams) suggest a background signature of global climate change expressed as shortened flood hydrograph falling limbs and lengthened flood interarrival times at low exceedence probabilities. This research has implications for flood control, water resource management, aquatic and riparian ecosystems and for rehabilitation strategies involving flow alteration and/or manipulation of sediment supplies.

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Section: Annual Trough Flowmentioning

confidence: 82%

The influence of major dams on hydrology through the drainage network of the Sacramento River basin, California

Singer

2006

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“…Indeed, the seasonal pattern of discharge may be more important than annual mean streamflow to riparian ecology (Barnett et al, 2005;Greet et al, 2011). Within snowmeltdominated river basins, such as the Rhône, the timing of spring flood peaks are particularly important for Populus seed dispersal and seedling recruitment, and GS discharge is critical for mature trees which generally require access to the water table, supported by hyporheic flow (Rood et al, 2008;Singer and Dunne, 2004). Under projected climate changes expressing as increases in temperature and reductions in precipitation, Mediterranean regions are expected to experience a shift in river regimes from that of snowmelt to runoff dominated, which would significantly impact the seasonality of streamflow (Barnett et al, 2005;García-Ruiz et al, 2011;Kovats et al, 2014).…”

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confidence: 99%

Sub‐annual variability in historical water source use by Mediterranean riparian trees

Sargeant

Singer

2016

Ecohydrology

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The seasonal availability of water within a tree's rooting zone may be an important determinant for individual tree growth and overall forest health, particularly in riparian corridors of Mediterranean climate zones that are vulnerable to water stress. Here, we present a new method that combines dendro-isotopes and isotope modelling for determining how water source use varies over 10 consecutive growing seasons (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010) for co-occurring species Populus nigra and Fraxinus excelsior, along the Rhône River, south-eastern France. We conducted highly resolved δ 18 O analysis of cellulose micro-slices within tree-rings and back-calculated the δ 18 O signature of source water available at the time of growth using a biochemical fractionation model. We related these patterns to inferred seasonal hydrological partitioning through comparison with δ 18 O of waters from the vadose and phreatic zones, precipitation and streamflow. The shallowly rooted Fraxinus displayed greater sub-annual source water variability, as well as greater isotopic enrichment, reflecting use of precipitation-derived vadose moisture. Its earlywood was formed mainly from winter rainfall (δ 18 O depleted) whilst the latewood was composed from growing season precipitation (δ 18 O enriched). In Populus, the sub-annual source water use was relatively depleted, suggesting use of hyporheic water and regional groundwater. From 2007, both species converged in their pattern of water source uptake which was attributed to a decline in phreatic water access for Populus. These results demonstrate that the seasonal variability in source water use can be identified retrospectively, a method which may prove important for anticipating the future consequences of climate-driven changes to the hydrological cycle.

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“…It is a 6.8 × 10 4 km 2 area in the northern part of the Central Valley of California (Figure 1, inset) and it comprises over half of the total drainage area of the Bay-Delta [7]. The Sacramento River is the longest river system in the state of California, and it is a complex and highly managed system.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterizing Changes in Streamflow and Sediment Supply in the Sacramento River Basin, California, Using Hydrological Simulation Program—FORTRAN (HSPF)

Stern¹,

Flint²,

Minear³

et al. 2016

Water

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A daily watershed model of the Sacramento River Basin of northern California was developed to simulate streamflow and suspended sediment transport to the San Francisco Bay-Delta. To compensate for sparse data, a unique combination of model inputs was developed, including meteorological variables, potential evapotranspiration, and parameters defining hydraulic geometry. A slight decreasing trend of sediment loads and concentrations was statistically significant in the lowest 50% of flows, supporting the observed historical sediment decline. Historical changes in climate, including seasonality and decline of snowpack, contribute to changes in streamflow, and are a significant component describing the mechanisms responsible for the decline in sediment. Several wet and dry hypothetical climate change scenarios with temperature changes of 1.5 • C and 4.5 • C were applied to the base historical conditions to assess the model sensitivity of streamflow and sediment to changes in climate. Of the scenarios evaluated, sediment discharge for the Sacramento River Basin increased the most with increased storm magnitude and frequency and decreased the most with increases in air temperature, regardless of changes in precipitation. The model will be used to develop projections of potential hydrologic and sediment trends to the Bay-Delta in response to potential future climate scenarios, which will help assess the hydrological and ecological health of the Bay-Delta into the next century.

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An empirical‐stochastic, event‐based program for simulating inflow from a tributary network: Framework and application to the Sacramento River basin, California

Cited by 21 publications

References 29 publications

The influence of major dams on hydrology through the drainage network of the Sacramento River basin, California

The influence of major dams on hydrology through the drainage network of the Sacramento River basin, California

Sub‐annual variability in historical water source use by Mediterranean riparian trees

Characterizing Changes in Streamflow and Sediment Supply in the Sacramento River Basin, California, Using Hydrological Simulation Program—FORTRAN (HSPF)

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