Flood severity along the Usumacinta River, Mexico: Identifying the anthropogenic signature of tropical forest conversion

Horton, Alexander; Nygren, Anja; Diaz-Perera, Miguel; Kummu, Matti

doi:10.1016/j.hydroa.2020.100072

Cited by 8 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 62 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The highest flows occur during the cold fronts period, reaching up to 8000 m 3 /s [40]. These high flows produce recurrent floods that cause economic damage and threaten the safety of the population [41,42]. For instance, just in November 2020 a serious flood occurred in the Tabasco plain, including Villahermosa, the most populous city in the Grijalva-Usumacinta basin (~1 million inhabitants).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Flocculation Patterns Related to Intra-Annual Hydrodynamics Variability in the Lower Grijalva-Usumacinta System

Izquierdo-Ayala¹,

García-Aragón²,

Castillo-Uzcanga

et al. 2023

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Particle aggregation modifies sediment dynamics, which is a determining factor for morphodynamic and ecological processes in deltaic plains. Here, we investigated the link between intra-annual hydrodynamics variability and flocculation in the Grijalva-Usumacinta system. Monthly (2016–2017) and seasonal (2021–2022) river data was processed using analytical methods and the simplified sonar equation. Flocs were reformed and characterized in the laboratory, validating the in situ settling velocities (0.5–3.8 mm/s) and the existence of large low-density macro-flocs (>300 μm). We verified that flocculation prevailed, exhibiting seasonal patterns; (1) the highest aggregation rates matched the increase in total suspended solids at rising-flow (>100 mg/L), (2) periods of high-flow showed stable aggregation rates, and (3) an influence of marine conditions occurred at low-flow. Particulate phosphorous and organic fraction showed seasonal patterns linked to flocculation. Due to damming, the shear rates varied slightly (7–11 L/s) in the Grijalva, leading to high flocculation intensities affecting the diffusivity ratio. In the Usumacinta, aggregation was limited by shear rates that normally exceed 15 1/s. We found seasonal Rouse parameters representative of sediment dynamics.

show abstract

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Flocculation Patterns Related to Intra-Annual Hydrodynamics Variability in the Lower Grijalva-Usumacinta System

Izquierdo-Ayala¹,

García-Aragón²,

Castillo-Uzcanga

et al. 2023

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…HR-30 is the largest discharge in Mexico and the second-largest overall to the Gulf of Mexico after the Mississippi River [69]. The drainage basin is ~112,550 km 2 , and the flow range is between 3000 and 6000 m 3 s −1 , equivalent to around 30% of the total surface runoff of Mexico [63,70]. The Usumacinta River basin extends over Guatemala (58% of the total area) and Mexico (42%).…”

Section: The Usumacinta Rivermentioning

confidence: 99%

The Seasonal Dynamics of Organic and Inorganic Carbon along the Tropical Usumacinta River Basin (Mexico)

Soria-Reinoso

Alcocer

Sánchez-Carrillo

et al. 2022

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Rivers are important sites for carbon (C) transport and critical components of the global C cycle that is currently not well constrained. However, little is known about C species’ longitudinal and temporal changes in large tropical rivers. The Usumacinta River is Mexico’s main lotic system and the tenth largest in North America. Being a tropical river, it has a strong climatic seasonality. This study aims to evaluate how organic (DOC and POC) and inorganic (DIC and PIC) carbon change spatially and seasonally along the Usumacinta River (medium and lower basin) in rainy (RS-2017) and dry (DS-2018) seasons and to estimate C fluxes into the southern Gulf of Mexico. Concentrations of DOC, POC, DIC, and PIC ranged from 0.88 to 7.11 mg L−1, 0.21 to 3.78 mg L−1, 15.59 to 48.27 mg L−1, and 0.05 to 1.51 mg L−1, respectively. DOC was the dominant organic species (DOC/POC > 1). It was ~doubled in RS and showed a longitudinal increase, probably through exchange with wetlands and floodplains. Particulate carbon showed a positive relationship with the total suspended solids, suggesting that in RS, it derived from surface erosion and runoff in the watershed. DIC is reported for the first time as the highest concentration measured in tropical rivers in America. It was higher in the dry season without a longitudinal trend. The C mass inflow–outflow balance in the RS suggested net retention (DOC and POC sink) in floodplains. In contrast, in the DS, the balance suggested that floodplains supply (C source) autochthonous DOC and POC. The lower Usumacinta River basin is a sink for DIC in both seasons. Finally, the estimated annual C export for the Usumacinta-Grijalva River was 2.88 (2.65 to 3.14) Tg yr−1, of which DIC was the largest transported fraction (85%), followed by DOC (10%), POC (4%), and PIC (<1%). This investigation is the first to present the C loads in a Mexican river.

show abstract

“…Studies across scales have assessed the contributions of different drivers on streamflow alterations. Yet, global-scale studies often lack the depth and detail of local and regional approaches that can, for instance, incorporate highly specialised hydrological modelling setups and extensive data (Dennedy-Frank and Gorelick, 2019;Horton et al, 2021) or advanced empirical models (Chagas et al, 2022;Levy et al, 2018). Global studies on streamflow change often focus on describing the hydrological outcome and attaching driver attribution to this by, for example, qualitative discussion (Porkka et al, 2024), static information on human drivers (Yang et al, 2021), or incorporation of a limited set of drivers (Zhang et al, 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Archetypal flow regime change classes as signatures of anthropogenic drivers of global streamflow alterations

Virkki,

Sahu,

Smilovic

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Streamflow – a key component of the water cycle – is experiencing drastic alteration due to human actions. While existing studies have widely assessed the global extent and degree of this change, understanding of its drivers has been limited because previous global-scale approaches have largely relied on modelled hypothetical scenarios. Here, we overcome these limitations by providing a systematic association analysis of streamflow change and its drivers. We use observed streamflow data in 5,163 catchments globally and combine them with data on precipitation, evapotranspiration, water use, and damming. Building on a robust annual trend analysis covering years 1971–2010, we first determine archetypal flow regime change (FRC) classes, and then use them to investigate associations between streamflow change and its drivers. We find that 89% of all catchments are assigned to four main FRCs, which indicates globally consistent flow regime changes. By associating driver trends with the FRCs, we further characterise them by trends and changes in the four investigated drivers. We find that FRCs depicting decreasing streamflow quantity and variability are strongly associated with direct human drivers, either from water use or damming. In contrast, indirect drivers (precipitation and evapotranspiration) are more dominant in FRCs that depict increasing streamflow quantity and variability. Our observation-based association analysis substantiates the findings of existing model-based studies and can thus add detail and validation to their interpretations. This may support developing and adopting efficient measures to mitigate streamflow change and its subsequent impacts across scales.

show abstract

Flood severity along the Usumacinta River, Mexico: Identifying the anthropogenic signature of tropical forest conversion

Cited by 8 publications

References 62 publications

Flocculation Patterns Related to Intra-Annual Hydrodynamics Variability in the Lower Grijalva-Usumacinta System

Flocculation Patterns Related to Intra-Annual Hydrodynamics Variability in the Lower Grijalva-Usumacinta System

The Seasonal Dynamics of Organic and Inorganic Carbon along the Tropical Usumacinta River Basin (Mexico)

Archetypal flow regime change classes as signatures of anthropogenic drivers of global streamflow alterations

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About